|
Philippines, 23 Nov 2024 |
Home >> News >> Columns >> Manny Piñol |  |
|
||||
|
|
|
|
To Shape A Warrior PhilBoxing.com Sat, 29 Nov 2008 There was an anecdote that appeared in a popular magazine many years ago about a proud mother, who, looking at her son sleeping in her arms gushed "It's not that he is my son, but this boy sure looks like the reincarnated Christ." This is the same syndrome that plagues most boxing managers who cannot seem to objectively assess the skills and capabilities of their fighters and would tend to look at them as the best in the world. With a little support from an overeager media, what would emerge would be overrated fighters whose reputations are way way beyond their actual skills and capabilities. Examples? Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista, AJ Banal, Ciso "El Terible" Morales and even Bernabe Concepcion to name a few. No offense intended. This is the same malady that sometimes afflicts me. Although I try hard to shake it off, there simply are times when I could not separate my being a boxing commentator, writer and analyst from my being a boxing manager as well. At ringside last Tuesday, I had to ask fellow boxing sportscaster Dennis Principe and renowned Filipino trainer Nonito Donaire, Sr. to help me preview the fights featuring the young boys who four to six years ago were plucked out of their remote villages in a crude talent search and trained to become ring fighters. Who's ready and who's not? This was the question that Dennis, Dodong Donaire and I tried to answer as we watched one fight after another. Edrin "The Sting" Dapudong, the World Boxing Organization Asia Pacific Youth minimumweight champion who has moved up to the jr. flyweight division and is now ranked No. 3, is ready for the big time. Tall for a jr. flyweight at 5' 4" and young at 23, Dapudong displayed maturity as a prizefighter using his longer reach to outpoint his opponent and tremendous body punches to end the fight in the 2nd round. "He could take on and win against Ivan Calderon (world jr. flyweight champion of Puerto Rico)," said Nonito Sr., who flew in from Cebu City to watch the Nov. 25 fight card in Midsayap, North Cotabato. With 20 professional fights (18 wins, 2 losses, 10 KOs), including a close decision loss to former IBF miniflyweight champion Muhammad Rachman of Indonesia in Jakarta earlier this year, Dapudong has gained enough experience to face the big names. On the radar now is Philippine jr. flyweight champion Rodel Mayol who will be asked to defend his national title against Dapudong next year. Glenn "The Rock" Porras, 23, is ready for the big fights. With a record of 20 wins in 22 fights (12 KOs), Porras still has some major flaws in his defenses but his devil-may-care attitude inside the ring will make him a big hit the American boxing scene. Porras is not one of those exceptionally talented fighters but his dedication to his training regimen and his dogged determination to win inside the ring make him a very dangerous opponent. But the big letdown of the evening was the highly-touted Lorenzo "Thunderbolt" Villanueva, the lanky featherweight with a fearsome fight record who made his 10th professional fight. No, he did not lose. In fact, he scored his 10th knockout in as many fights but it was not something that made me ecstatic. The 23-year-old Villanueva who is 5' 7" tall ignored all previous instructions and the corner men's advices to use his long right for his jab to set up his punches. Instead, he rushed like a raging bull flailing away and throwing off-timed punches. Indeed, he caught his Thai opponent with a thunderous left to the jaw in the fourth round and sent the foreign fighter to the canvas for the full count. But that hardly impressed me. My assessment? If Villanueva continues to fight the way he did last Tuesday, it will take two more years before he could even be considered as a serious contender in the featherweight or even lightweight division. The argument that he has the power which could knock out opponents cold will simply be neutralized by the fact that inside the ring, there are two people throwing punches at one another. The danger would be if Villanueva meets somebody who is just as powerful as he is but who is equipped with better defensive skills. "Layo pa sa tinoud," commented Dodong Donaire. (He is still far from the truth.) I agree. And so as the year comes to a close and we look forward to 2009, who among the young boxers from Mindanao could possibly make it big? 1. Edrin "The Sting" Dapudong, RP No. 3 jr. flyweight. With a little more fine tuning on his jabbing style, this boy is ready for the bigtime. He could be a world champion. 2. Glenn "The Rock" Porras, RP No. 3 bantamweight. In spite of flaws in his defensive style, Porras' rugged brawling style in the ring will make him a very dangerous opponent. A dedicated boxer, he could come up with a shocker in 2009. 3. Rommel "My Little Assassin" Asenjo, 19, miniflyweight (10 wins, 8 KOs, 2 losses). Dodong Donaire is impressed with this boy and so am I. Given 3 or 4 more fights, he would be ready the Philippine title of Denver Cuello and even a world championship. 4. Jundy "Pretty Boy" Maraon, 23, RP No. 6 bantamweight (Undefeated, 10 wins, 8 KOs, 1 draw). One of the two California-based boxers of Braveheart Boxing Club, the 5' 6" tall Maraon, who is originally from Suminot, Zamboanga del Sur, is a hardhitting fighter whose power is comparable to that of Manny Pacquiao. He will fight in the undercard of the Urbano Antillion fight in Maywood, California on Dec. 12 although he is not expected to perform excellently because of a long lay-off. At 118, he could be a world beater given 4 more fights next year. In fact, he is our answer to the brash and boastful Vic Darchinyan should the Australian champion decide to move up to the bantamweight division. 5. Rolando "Smooth Operator" Magbanua, 23, RP No. 6 jr. featherweight (Undefeated, 11 wins, 7 KOs). A former member of the Philippine team, Magbanua is a gifted fighter who moves gracefully and naturally inside the ring. He is one of the very rare fighters who does not seem to struggle or exert any effort in throwing a punch. Quick-eyed and 5' 5" tall, Magbanua is a cinch for a world title given 4 more hard fights. 6. Reynaldo "Boy of Steel" Belandres, 23, RP No. 1 jr. featherweight (Undefeated 9 wins, 7 KOs, 1 draw). Belandres, former member of the Philippine national pool as an amateur, fought for the PBF title two months ago which ended in a technical draw when he suffered a cut in the 4th round. He was ahead in the scorecards and could have won that fight had it not been stopped. He is now being prepared for a crack at the Philippine title early next year where he is the mandatory challenger to champion Jun Talape of Baguio City. 7. Glenn "Rapid Fire" Gonzales, 24, RP No. 6 featherweight (Undefeated 7 wins, 4 KOs, 1 draw). A serious injury involving a broken bone in his left hand stunted the 5' 7" tall Gonzales' career. He had to undergo a bone transplant to replace the shattered bone in his left hand. Now based in Salinas City, California, Glenn who happens to be my cousin, fights Dec. 12 also in Maywood, CA. With a very limited fight experience, Gonzales needs about 10 more fights before he could be considered for a world title. Besides, he is growing fast and may even campaign in the lightweight division in a year's time. Seven outstanding fighters in one boxing club alone is extra-ordinary. And the good thing is that many more are coming from the amateur ranks. This gives us the luxury of really separating the grain from the chaff, selecting only those who really have the potential. After all, defying the "Gushing Mother Syndrome," not every baby boy could be Christ reincarnated. Click here for a complete listing of columns by this author. Click here for a complete listing of this author's articles from different news sources. |
|
|
PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general. Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com |
PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
developed and maintained by dong secuya © 2024 philboxing.com. |
