Unbeaten Filipinos Jack Tepora and Christian Araneta should have little difficulty against their overmatched Indonesian opponents, whose records don’t stand up under inspection
MANILA, Philippines – Tomorrow night, on Saturday, March 18, two of the best young fighters from the Philippines will be in action against Indonesian fighters.
On paper it looks like unbeaten Pinoys Jack Tepora and Christian Araneta will get some international experience at home, and they?ll raise their hands triumphantly ? the conquerors of Indonesian invaders who sought to topple them.
The only way we?ll learn anything new about Tepora and Araneta from the ?Who?s Next 4? card is if they grab the microphone after the fights and tell us their favorite foods or colors. Because the matchmaking for this card is indefensible.
Let?s start with the main event. Tepora has a record of 19-0 with 14 knockout wins. Tepora holds the WBO?s Oriental junior featherweight (122 pounds) and is rated number 11 in the world by the organization. From a distance, the 30-year-old Yon Armed (14-7, 6 knockouts) looks like a decent opponent who is good, but not too good.
“He better make sure he delivers on that, that he can knockout me out because if he can’t, I will knock him out,” Tepora is quoted in a press release sent by the promoter Omega Pro Sports International after Friday?s weigh-in.
Uhh, yeah, you really should be able to. Consider that Armed has fought 3 times outside of his home country, and each time he?s been knocked out in three, two and one round, respectively. The length of his international fights is like a countdown to his chin detonating.
Five of Armed?s 21 fights have come against fighters making their pro debut, according to Boxrec, and another 5 came against fighters who had zero wins before facing him. His last two fights came against a fighter making his debut (Slamet) and another with a 0-1 record (Manuel Junior), and in the fight before that, he lost a 5-round decision to a 4-12 opponent.
Tell me how a win over Armed proves anything to those watching the fight?
The situation is even worse for Araneta (13-0, 11 KOs), a heavy-handed brawler whom I?d consider a top 5 or 10 talent in the country. A video I snapped of his last fight against Philip Luis Cuerdo, a seventh-round knockout win, was shared widely on Facebook, with people comparing him to a young Pacquiao.
He?s knocked out world-rated fighter Jesse Espinas (another excellent talent) and gave Jason Neri his first loss in 2015.
So why, may I ask, is he fighting Demsi Manufoe (11-6, 8 KOs) instead of someone worthy of his ability?
