The standard purse for a Filipino professional boxer is R1K per round, in other words, if one fights as a 4-rounder, he gets R4K, a 6-rounder R6K, and so on, win or lose.
Those who fight in Philippine championship fights get more, normally in the area of R70K to R80K. Of course, these amounts are not take-home pay since these are shared with managers, trainers, sparring partners, not to mention other sundry expenses that a fighter incurs. It is said that one would be lucky to clear half of his stipulated purse after all the deductions.
Then again, boxers do not fight often. For obvious reasons a nasty cut, a knockout loss (rules say a KO victim can only fight again after at least 45 days) and the normal recuperative periods after a boxing match.
So unless one is a Manny Pacquiao, boxing cannot be considered a lucrative occupation. But thousands of young Filipino lads have anchored their dreams of poverty alleviation on what boxing aficionados euphemistically label as “the sweet science.” Unfortunately, there is only one Manny Pacquiao.
Lito Sisnorio obviously was one of those who dreamt that boxing was to be his way out of poverty. He was certainly no sensation, but he did win the WBC Youth flyweight crown via a 5th round KO win only to lose it in his very first defense.
A spate of more defeats followed, but Sisnorio continued to plod on. He needed the fight to be able to keep body and soul together. And so like many others, he took on every match that was offered him abroad, unmindful of the reality that there was very little chance he could win. Tragically, this led to his death a day after his knockout loss to former world champion Chatchai Sasakul.
This practice of unscrupulous promoters, managers and agents herding our hapless boxers like cattle to slaughter to shore up the records of their own fighters abroad has been going on for a very long time. The average boxing fan knows of it. Equally prevalent is using another boxer?s name to escape detection.
Why the Games and Amusements Board (GAB), which is the government tasked to protect and oversee professional sports, continues to be helpless about this is beyond me.
In Sisnorio?s case, I heard an interview by Snow Badua of Sports Radio with Dr. Nasser Cruz, GAB Boxing Division Head, who said that the agency did not know about Sisnorio?s fight because the ill-fated boxer did not inform them of his trip. He added that this is the difficulty they face because any boxer who has a passport and “knows how to board a plane” can leave as tourist and engage in unsanctioned fights. He said the GAB cannot stop them lest they be accused of human rights violations.
I don?t know, Doc, but shouldn?t the GAB make it its business to know what our boxers are up to? And in this day and age of the cell phone and the internet, isn?t it easy to track them, order them to stand down and if they refuse, warn the foreign promoters of all hell breaking loose if they persist on allowing any of our unauthorized boxers to fight?
In the aftermath of Sisnorio?s death, the GAB has made all the usual noises, investigations, review of existing agreements with other countries and ta daaa?a ban on all fights in Thailand.
This seems to me like a knee-jerk reaction. Sure, there are hooligans in boxing in Thailand, but we have some unsavory characters here too. So unless we plan to ban boxing altogether, there seems to be no reason for such a drastic move.
What of legitimate Thai promoters who are lining up good fights for our boxers? Surely not all promoters there are shysters?
And what about our fighters who have legitimate chances against Thai boxers who could be their stepping stones to better fights and purses?
When Eric Buhain was appointed as GAB chairman, many athletes were jubilant because one of their own was to be at the helm. Not only is he a former national swimmer, but he is also educated, articulate and well-connected (his father-in-law is Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, himself a known sportsman).
Perhaps it is high time Chairman Buhain rolls up his sleeves and immerses himself deeply into this problem. If there is someone who could best appreciate this situation and get things done, it should be the good GAB chairman.
Unfortunately for Lito Sisnorio, his dreams will never be realized as he now sleeps eternally.
We pray that with Lito?s dream now broken, those of many others would come to pass. Or at the very least, people concerned should show they truly care.
