WORLD Boxing Organization mini-flyweight king Donnie Nietes will be feted tonight in the 11th Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde Memorial Awards and Banquet of Champions at the Grand Ballroom of the Sofitel Hotel for a successful campaign last year.
Nietes will be awarded the ?Fighter of the Year? along with fellow world champions Nonito Donaire Jr. and Ana Julaton.
?We?re thankful. We?re very happy because he was one of the most underrated fighters but he has been breaking records now. He?s one of the fighters who are very deserving. He?s a very nice person outside the ring. He came to us as a janitor and rose from the ranks, the guy deserves it. Little by little he is making a name for himself,? said ALA Promotions president Michael Aldeguer.
Nietes, 28, won both of his fights last year against Mexicans Jesus Silvestre and Michael Rodriguez. Nietes, who was also awarded ?Fighter of the Year? last year, became the only Filipino world champion who won in three world title fights in Mexico. His third win was against Rodriguez.
Nietes also became one of the longest reigning Filipino world champions behind Elorde and was also mentioned in a book by renowned boxing personalities Bert Sugar and Teddy Atlas, ?The Ultimate Book of Boxing Lists?, as one of the greatest mini-flyweight boxers of all-time.
ALA fighters Rey Bautista, AJ Banal, Rocky Fuentes, Jason Pagara, Mark Jason Melligen and the retired Z Gorres will also attend the awards.
