Florante Condes lost his IBF minimumweight title, five Filipinos were thwarted in bids for world crowns and at least four highly-regarded contenders blew their chance to advance to the global stage but Manny Pacquiao made all the difference in balancing the ups and downs of Philippine boxing this year.
Pacquiao chalked up two wins in world championship bouts, outpointing Juan Manuel Marquez for the WBC superfeatherweight diadem last March and halting David Diaz for the WBC lightweight jewel last June. He stopped Oscar de la Hoya early this month but no title was at stake.
Pacquiao?s exploits overshadowed the pitfalls that befell a slew of Filipino fighters even as three others finished the year as world champions ? WBO minimumweight Donnie Nietes, IBF/IBO flyweight Nonito Donaire and WBO bantamweight Gerry Pe?alosa. Condes was the most celebrated casualty, yielding his IBF 105-pound throne to Raul Garcia on a split 12-round decision in Baja California, Mexico, last June. Condes, 28, returned to score a lackluster technical decision over Ronel Ferreras in Compostela two weeks ago and has a lot of ground to cover to get back on track.
The five Filipinos who were repulsed in attempts to win a world title were lightflyweights Sonny Boy Jaro, Glenn Donaire and Juanito Rubillar and bantamweights Eden Sonsona and Rolly (Matsushita) Lunas.
Jaro floored WBC 108-pound titleholder Edgar Sosa in the ninth round but couldn?t dispose of the Mexican in losing a decision in Mexico City last September. Sosa turned back another Filipino challenger, Rubillar, on a seventh round stoppage, also in Mexico City, last November.
Glenn Donaire, for his part, lost a unanimous 12-round verdict to IBF lightflyweight titlist Ulises (Archie) Solis in Sonora last July.
Sonsona, who turns 20 today, was stopped by Silence Mabuza in the eighth round in South Africa in an IBO bantamweight title fight last February. He survived an eight-count but chose to retire in what appeared to be a premature introduction to a world title fight for the youngster.
Lunas gave up his OPBF title to challenge WBA bantamweight champion Anselmo Moreno in Panama last October and was thrashed in his try to wrest the 118-pound title, which Luisito Espinosa held from 1989 to 1991.
Aside from Pacquiao, the Filipinos who won in world title fights were Nietes, Nonito Donaire and Pe?alosa. Nietes retained his WBO crown by knocking out Nicaragua?s Eddy Castro in Cebu last August. He will defend his crown against Erik Ramirez in Mexico on Feb. 28.
Donaire stopped South Africa?s Moruti Mthalane in the second defense of his IBF/IBO titles in Las Vegas last November. He will relinquish both crowns to challenge WBO superflyweight champion Fernando Montiel at the Araneta Coliseum on March 15.
Pe?alosa blasted Ratanachai Sor Vorapin into submission in the eighth stanza to keep his WBO bantamweight crown at the Big Dome last April. He is slated to face mandatory No. 1 challenger Eric Morel in his second defense before April next year.
Promising contenders who were derailed in efforts to progress included superbantamweight Rey (Boom Boom) Bautista, superflyweight A. J. Banal, bantamweight Michael Domingo and lightweights Randy Suico and Ranee Ganoy.
Bautista, 22, opened the year with wins over Genaro Camargo and Eden Marquez but lost an eight-round decision to veteran Heriberto Ruiz in Las Vegas last November. Banal, 19, trounced Uruguay?s Caril Herrera last April then was knocked out by Panama?s Rafael Concepcion in a WBA interim superflyweight title bout in Cebu last July.
Domingo, 29, was diagnosed to be suffering from hepatitis B just days before he was slated to make his US debut. He will sit out a year to recover. Suico, 29, was lined up to take on David Diaz until he was decisioned by Ichitaro Ichii to lose his OPBF lightweight belt in Tokyo last week. Suico?s loss left the Philippines without a single OPBF champion. Ganoy, the IBF No. 13 lightweight based in Australia, was pulverized by Ecuador?s Fernando Angulo in South Africa early this month and it badly tarnished his reputation as a KO artist. Ganoy?s record dropped to 25-11-2, with 21 KOs.
The good news is several Filipinos are coming up strong. The brightest prospect is superbantamweight Bernabe Concepcion whose record is 27-1-1, with 16 KOs. He scored four wins this year, all in overseas outings, and hasn?t lost in his last 20 bouts. Concepcion, 20, is ticketed to meet Kenya?s dangerous Sande Otieno for the vacant WBC International featherweight crown at the Araneta Coliseum on Jan. 11.
Other Filipino stars on the rise are WBO Asia-Pacific minimumweight titlist and WBO No. 1 contender Milan Melindo, 20, (17-0, 5 KOs), WBO No. 8 flyweight Drian Francisco, 26 (15-0-1, 11 KOs), WBO No. 3 superflyweight Z Gorres who held IBF/WBA/WBC champion Vic Darchinyan to a draw last February, WBO No. 7 superbantamweight Ciso Morales (12-0, 7 KOs), WBO No. 1 lightflyweight Brian Viloria (who won 5-of-5 this year and will challenge Solis for the IBF crown at the Araneta Coliseum on March 15), former OPBF and PABA lightweight champion Dennis Laurente, 31 (30-3-5, 16 Kos – he won 2-of-2 this year, both in the US) and the unbeaten hotshots from North Cotabato Vice Gov. Manny Pi?ol?s Braveheart stable, superflyweight Jundy Maraon (11-0-1, 9 KOs), bantamweight Rolando Magbanua (13-0, 8 KOs), featherweight Glenn Gonzales (8-0-1, 4 KOs), featherweight Lorenzo Villanueva (11-0, 11 KOs), superbantamweight Reynaldo Belandres (11-0-1, 8 KOs), lightflyweight Jermel Jabel (7-0, 4 KOs) and bantamweight Rey Juntilla (7-0, 4 KOs).
