AS FAR as rivalries in boxing go, Thailand vs Philippines cannot hold a candle to the putative Filipino-Mexican enmity on top of the ring.
But you can expect that to ratchet up a bit with the upcoming world championship fight between AJ Banal and Sor Singyu on Oct. 20, 2012 at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Express your condolences to DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo’s family
You would have thought that with the golden age that Philippine boxing is currently experiencing that world championship fights are a dime-a- dozen.
However, financial considerations and limitations hold the opposite true and you can only pitifully recount a handful of world championship bouts staged in our country the last few years.
Sure there are several ?championship bouts? in numerous cards featuring foreign opponents, but these are usually for regional belts. The real world championship fights are hard to come by.
Like you, I?ve had my fill of quotidian fare, and I hunger for the exceptional. .
WBC FLYWEIGHT BELT. An interesting sidebar to the Thailand-Philippines boxing rivalry is how the WBC flyweight belt has changed hands between some of the best fighters both countries have to offer.
Consider the following fights.
MANNY PACQUIAO VS. MEDGOEN SENGSURAT (Sept. 17, 1999). A young Pacquiao was fresh off a title-winning effort against Gabriel Mira in April and was penciled to defend his WBC flyweight belt at the Pakpanag Stadium in Nakhon Si Thamarrat, Thailand.
But the 21-year old Pacquiao was already outgrowing the division and had difficulty making weight. In the end, he lost the title at the scales, and a weight-drained Pacman succumbed to a body shot in the third round.
MEDGOEN SINGSURAT VS. MALCOM TUNACAO (May 19, 2000). Interestingly, Singsurat, also known as Medgoen 3k Battery would lose that very same belt when he fought another Pinoy in Malcolm Tunacao.
?Eagle Eye? shocked the boxing world by sharpshooting his way and delivering a stunning end to a closely fought bout via 7th round TKO at Udon Thani, Thailand.
MALCOLM TUNACAO vs. PONGSAKLEK WONJONKAM (March 2, 2001) Ironically, Tunacao would again lose the very same belt a few months later when he was knocked down three times and stopped in the very first round by Thai legend Pongsaklek Wonjongkam.
SONNY BOY JARO VS. PONGSAKLEK WONJONKAM (March 2, 2012) Pongsaklek proceeded to hold a vice-like grip on that title , defending it a record 26 times in a span of 7 years before losing to Japanese Daisuke Nato in July 18, 2007.
He would recover the title however in 2010 be defeating another Japanese fighter in Koki Kameda.
But our story does not end there as the Pinoys would finally get their taste of revenge after eleven long years.
Sonny Boy Jaro was given only a puncher?s chance when he matched up with Pongsaklek in March of this year.
But Sonny was hardly intimidated by the legend that preceded his opponent and took the fight right to him. His bullied him along the ropes and irreverently roughed him up when he had the chance.
His tactics worked brilliantly, and in the sixth, he caught a tiring, Pongsaklek with a brutal barrage that had the decorated Thai champ out on his feet.
WBO Bantamweight. Banal?s fight against Sor Singyu isn?t for the same diadem but for the WBO Bantamweight belt.
During the press conference the other day, Sor Singyu struck me as a fearless, calm and confident fighter. He shared the trivia that he got into boxing by accident as he had to sub for his brother in an amateur fight. He won and the rest is history.
Let?s hope this fight lives up to the rich and unctuous rivalry between Thai and Filipino fighters.
LAST ROUND. It?s on my Spain-based cousin Bernadette Quijano. Beinvenida… Cheers!
