In the sport of boxing, timing is crucial. A good boxer times his punches in order to hit the target at the right place and at the right time. Up against a moving target, boxers need to develop that perfect timing to land those punches that lead to a win. A perfectly timed punch combined with speed, accuracy and a knuckle-fronted ?hit? usually results into a knockdown or even a bout-ending knock-out. A punch without timing results into a total miss or a ?half-hit.?
It?s with the same ?timing? that we welcome the thrust of Omega Pro Sports International to level up and take the initiative to take their boxing to another level. In an earlier piece that we wrote, we made wishes for Cebu Boxing in 2016, and one of these was the wish to have another Cebu-based boxing outfit step up and provide more boxing for the Cebu fans. With ALA Promotions going international, it?s necessary for another boxing promotions outfit to keep us fans busy and Cebu boxers active and competitive. Thus, the launch of ?Who?s Next?? is not only a drive to discover other world beaters from Cebu. It?s also an opportunity to bring out who?s next among Cebu Boxing?s promoters to make that leap into big-time boxing. Its recent launch held at the Robinsons Galleria was a good sign of things to come. Omega Pro Sports International is actually the IPI or Omega group that has staged boxing events all over Cebu and some parts of the VISMIN. These events are usually held at gyms of towns outside Metro Cebu. Their last event was held in Borbon last month. They are not newcomers to the sport at all. In fact, the Omega Gym is where former world champion Johnriel Casimero was based when he won his world championship.
And so after all those trips to the probinsya, Omega is ready to go big time with its ?Who?s Next?? pakulo, a six-card series featuring Omega?s top boxers as they make their way up to the international stage. The new thrust comes with new developments and this includes bringing in a new person to run the show. Bantayan Vice Mayor Chad Ca?ares, who once served as a consultant to ALA Promotions, is now on top of the operations. On the technical side, the team of Dr. Rhoel Deja?o was brought in to take care of the strength and conditioning and medical needs of the Omega boxers. Jop Gallardo is already on board and is slowly but surely leading the ?unlearning? of old methods that were applied in the past, and learning the strength and conditioning needs of today. These two changes alone reflect that Omega is willing to implement new ideas for the good of boxing. Timing was perfect here as you can?t go wrong with Chad and Doc Rhoel. Call me biased but I?m pretty sure they?ll prove me right.
But the journey is not going to be easy. Producing world champions is no big joke, and Omega will need a right mix of a stable boxing network (for foreign opponents and regional titles), world-class boxers (recruitment and training), equally world-class trainers/coaches, proper nutrition for boxers, an excellent marketing/PR team, sponsors, partners and loads of money, especially when a TV partner doesn?t come into the picture early on. It?s evident that IPI is willing to pour in the much-needed investment to jumpstart the program, confident that sponsors and media partners step in to help out. This early, Hyundai and Harley Davidson are already on board. Not a bad start at all. They realize that ticket sales will be just a fraction of revenues in boxing. In fact, revenues from tickets becomes just a bonus. The key ingredient to surviving in the boxing business is a TV partner. With ABS-CBN tying up with ALA and Top Rank, can Omega strike a deal with either the TV5 network (including Hyper and Aksyon TV) or GMA (GMA 7 and GMA NewsTV). The TV5 network also has the PBA, UFC, PBA D-League and Blow by Blow (boxing) in its sports portfolio. It also won the rights to the Rio Olympics and the FIBA Olympic Qualifier Tournament. GMA is not really into sports actively, but did have a few boxing programs in the past.
?Who?s Next?? kicks off with a boxing event on March 6, featuring Jhack Tepora who will fight for a WBO Asia-Pacific regional title in the super bantamweight division. Omega will strategically schedule the fights of its boxers throughout the year, with Robinsons Galleria serving as a venue for its pre-fight activities and actual fights. They also announced that the usual visits to the towns in the probinsya will be maintained (more good news here).
So here we go! We?re looking forward to a great year of boxing with Omega playing a big role in boosting Cebu Boxing. Here?s hoping that they score a knockout with ?Who?s next?? Freeman ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch:
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Time-out: Please pray for Eude Carlos Yap who passed away recently.
