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FILIPINO CHAMP REY LORETO DEFENDS TITLE IN LION'S DEN By Manny Piñol PhilBoxing.com Sun, 22 Mar 2015  East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa - Filipino world junior flyweight champion Rey Loreto, a former journeyman who struck gold when he KOd South African Nkosinathi Joyi in Monte Carlo last year, defends his International Boxing Organization (IBO) title tonight in hostile territory against a local boxer who wants to avenge an embarrassing loss. Loreto, 23, a native of Davao City, will be meeting Joyi for the second time to make the first defense of the title he won Feb. 2, 2014 when he scored a stunning 3rd round knockout over the South African in neutral ground in Monaco. Finding no Philippine promoter to stage his first title defense, Loreto and his manager, Baguio City's Brico Santig, agreed to fight Joyi in his own territory, a country known for its atrocious boxing decisions which robbed so many Filipino boxers in the past of well-deserved victory. Aside from a hostile home crowd known for its almost rabid support for the local boxers, Loreto finds himself in the ring with a South African referee Tony Nyangiwe and two more South Africans as judges at ringside - Allan Matakane and Lulama Mtya. The third judge is Ghana's Eddie Pappoe. There was supposed to be a judge from Germany, Arthur Ellenhson, but South Africa promoter Siphatho Handi said the German official missed his flight prompting the IBO supervisor Len Hunt to appoint another South Africa, Mtya, as the replacement. Loreto is also not in the best of shape having undergone a surgical procedure to remove a swollen appendix two months ago. He admitted that he had not sparred as much as he wanted to because he was recovering from the operation. Loreto's trainer, Joven Jorda, however, said that the Filipiino champion could not be dissuaded from his decision to take the fight even before he could completely recover from the medical procedure. "I'm okey," Loreto said yesterday after the weigh in where he tipped the scale at 48.9 kilos. Joyi also easily made the weight. Jorda said he believes that what Loreto lacks in heavy training will be very well covered by the Filipino champion's intense desire to win so that he could finish the construction of his small house in Barangay Tamayong, Davao City. "Gusto ko talaga matapos ang bahay ko kasi lumalaki na ang anak ko," Loreto, who has a one-year-old son by his Japanese girl friend, said. In the undercard of the fight, veteran Jetly Purisima, 27, of Gen. Santos City, who stands about 5' 3" goes up against a bean-pole like Sinethemba Magibisela who is about 5' 7" tall. Purisima, however, is unfazed by the height of his opponent with whom he will be engaged in a 10-round fight. "Niwang man," Purisima said of his opponent. (He is thin.) The fights will start with the Purisima-Magibisela non-title fight at about 2 p.m. South Africa time which would be 8 p.m. Sunday Philippine time. (Photos show IBO Champion Rey Loreto and challenger Nkosinathi Joyi in a fight pose with promoter Siphatho Handi and Magibisela with Purisima.) Click here to view a list of other articles written by Manny Piñol.  |
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