OAKLAND, California ? At time when fighters are supposed to keep their weapons on safety lock, Filipino champion Jerwin Ancajas is keeping his finger on the trigger as he prepares for his sixth defense of the International Boxing Federation (IBF) super-flyweight crown.
Five days before risking the IBF 115-lb title against Mexican challenger Alejandro Santiago at the Oracle Arena, the southpaw Ancajas took two trips to the fitness facility of his hotel on Sunday.
Just before noon, Ancajas tagged along his training team downstairs for a burning workout under the scorching autumn sun.
Seven hours later, as the heat subsided and gave way to the cool breeze, Ancajas showed up at the gym for another blistering session.
As fight day nears, Ancajas is making sure he covers all bases as he expects a rough outing against the upset-conscious Santiago, who has fought almost exclusively in Mexico.
Fighting for the third time on US soil, Ancajas feels the Tijuana-based Santiago, 22, will perform better than his 16-2-4 win-loss-draw record (with 7 KOs) suggests.
?He knows that a win will open up big opportunities that?s why I expect him to be at his best,? said the 26-year-old Ancajas (30-1-1 with 20 KOs).
