WBO Asia Pacific chairman Leon Panoncillo has been appointed by WBO President Paco Valcarcel as supervisor for the April 30 unification showdown between WBO bantam champ Fernando Montiel and WBC bantam ruler Hozumi Hasegawa.
Panoncillo, who is credited for making the WBO the most recognizable and most active boxing body in Asia, is set to fly into Japan on Thursday.
The WBC is also set to send its own supervisor for the fight.
If Montiel wins the bout, he will earn the WBC title in addition to his WBO crown, and will join pound-for-pound king and superstar Manny Pacquiao as a proud holder of the WBO belt.
The Montiel-Hasegawa showdown has been creating a buzz among fans in the entire Asia, as it pits a legitimate Mexican champion in Montiel against a true Japanese hero and considered one of the finest fighters in the world today in Hasegawa.
“It is an honor to supervise a fight of this magnitude and importance. It is fights like this that makes boxing shine in its full grandeur and importance,” says Panoncillo.
Meanwhile, the WBO is slated to do an outreach program for poor kids on May 14 in Cebu City to show its concern for the poorest among the poor.
“This has always been the essence of this organization. To reach out to those in need, and to be there for others, that’s what the WBO is all about,” informs Panoncillo.
