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Philippines, 29 Oct 2025 |
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2 Outstanding Mindanao Boxers Show Wares in Cebu Card PhilBoxing.com Tue, 25 Nov 2008 Kidapawan City - Two of Mindanao's most promising junior featherweights will show their skills to the huge boxing crowd of Cebu City when they appear in the "Daytime Boxing" international card staged by fight impressario Sammy Gelloani on Nov. 30. The Philippines No. 7 jr. featherweight contender Rolando "Smooth Operator" Magbanua, 23, who was earlier set to go up against former world bantamweight champion Ratanachai Sor Vorapin, will go up against an upcoming Thai fighter, Sithkosol Thiti, in eight rounds. Sithkosol, described by Gelloani as a young jr. featherweight prospect in Thailand was brought in to take the place of Vorapin following an injury suffered by the former world champion during training. "I will fight anybody," Magbanua, a former national amateur team member, said when he was informed that Vorapin could not fight. The 5' 5" tall native of Pigcawayan, a North Cotabato frontier town, which has been the scene of recent Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) attacks, is undefeated in 11 professional fights, 7 of which ended in knockout. Magbanua was given the monicker "Smooth Operator" because of his artful and smooth fighting style which was fine tuned by Cuban coach Honorato Espinosa who stayed in North Cotabato for 18 months. Appearing in another 8-round bout against a still unnamed Filipino opponent is the Philippines' No. 1 jr. featherweight contender, 23-year-old Reynaldo "Boy of Steel" Belandres who is preparing for a crack the the national title now being held by Baguio City's Jun Talape. Belandres, also 5' 5" tall, holds a record of 9 wins, 7 KOs and 1 draw. He is preparing for a mandatory defense by Talape of the Philippine 122-lb. crown set to be held early next year. Both boxers are products of the grassroots amateur boxing program initiated by then Governor Manny Pinol, who is now the vice governor of North Cotabato. The Magbanua-Sithkosol fight will be beamed live via sattelite to Thailand and will also be shown on Philippine cable TV, according to Gelloani.  |
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