INTERNATIONAL Boxing Federation (IBF) flyweight champion Donnie Nietes kicked off his training camp in the US yesterday in Freddie Roach?s famed Wild Card Gym in Hollywood and will start sparring today.
Nietes has two quality sparring partners already lined up for him; one is fellow Filipino Brian Viloria, while the other is Mexican Ricardo Rodriguez.
?We have Viloria and Rodriguez,? Nietes? coach Edmund Villamor told SunStar Cebu. ?They are very good quality sparring partners. Viloria has skills, while Rodriguez is a fighter who wants to come in.?
Nietes, a three-division world champion, is deep in preparation for the first title defense of his IBF flyweight belt against ex-world champion Juan Carlos Reveco in HBO Boxing?s ?Superfly 2? show on Feb. 24 at The Forum in Inglewood, California.
The 37-year-old Viloria, a two-division world titleholder, is also fighting in the same event as Nietes. He is fighting for the vacant World Boxing Association (WBA) flyweight belt against unbeaten Artem Dalakian.
Viloria is one of the best Filipino fighters of this generation. He has once held the World Boxing Council (WBC) light flyweight, IBF light flyweight, World Boxing Organization (WBO) flyweight and WBA flyweight titles.
Rodriguez, in the meantime, is a 28-year-old former world title challenger. He fought WBO super flyweight champion Naoya Inoue and got knocked out in three rounds.
The 35-year-old Nietes, 40-1-4 with 22 knockouts, has already sparred with both Viloria and Rodriguez at the Wild Card Gym in the past.
?His condition is good. For now, we are still trying to adjust to the climate here,? said Villamor, who arrived with Nietes and brother Edito Villamor last Sunday (RP time). ?We will also go to Nick Curson for our conditioning training.?
The 34-year-old Reveco is a very experienced and talented fighter. He is a former WBA light flyweight and flyweight titleholder and has fought 17 world title contests in a 14-year career. He earned his shot at Nietes after beating Komgrich Nantapech by unanimous decision last September.
?We have to watch out for his left hand,? said Villamor. (EKA)
