TWIN WINS: CONDES DECISIONS RACHMAN, AS DONAIRE KOS DARCHINYAN IN FIVE!

08 July, 2007 by Reylan Loberternos


WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS!

Tagbilaran City, RP – The rainy season has just begun. After months of waiting and failed attempts at wresting a world championship belt, two proud Filipino warriors have finally captured what their compatriots have been dreaming of in a very long while. Pinoy pugilists 27-yr-old Florante Condes and 24-yr-old Nonito Donaire now stand as the lone Filipino world champions, as both combatants secured contrasting championship victories over their respective foes in opposite sides of the globe.

HAIL THE NEW IBF MINIMUMWEIGHT KING!

Pint-sized Florante “Little Pacquiao” Condes (22-3-1, 20 KOs) showed ‘tremendous power and fighting heart’ to eke out a split decision victory over erstwhile IBF minimumweight king Muhammad Rachman (62-6-5, 31 KOs) of Indonesia with scores of 114-112, 113-117, and 114-112, according to a report from Philboxing.com’s Salven L. Lagumbay, who acted as one of the judges at ringside. Condes decked Rachman twice, once in the 3rd and once in the 10th canto.

NONITO DONAIRE SHOCKS THE WORLD!

Not a day later, US-based Filipino Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire (18-1-0, 11 KOs) followed suit by wresting the IBF and IBO flyweight titles from overwhelming favorite and previously undefeated Australia-based Armenian Vic “The Raging Bull” Darchinyan (28-1-0, 22 KOs) with an emphatic 5th round KO victory. This was a rather sweet victory for Donaire, as he exacts revenge for his younger brother Glenn, who fell prey to Darchinyan’s awesome punching power last year.

IS THIS THE START OF A BOUNTIFUL HARVEST?

Less than a month from now, four other Filipino hopefuls will try to duplicate, if not surpass, what Condes and Donaire have achieved inside the squared circle.

AMONSOT IN POSITION FAMILIAR TO DONAIRE!

Facing tremendous odds, 21-yr-old lightweight Czar Amonsot (18-2-1,10 KOs) of the Philippines now has a bright spot to look at, as he hopes to annex the interim WBO lightweight title from hard-punching phenom Michael “Rocky” Katsidis (22-0-0, 20 KOs) of Australia two weeks from now underneath the Hopkins-Wright tussle. Donaire’s victory over Darchinyan should provide Amonsot with a glimmer of hope that talent and skill can definitely neutralize power.

MAYOL BATTLES SOLIS IN AUGUST!

Fireworks! Nothing less is expected, as the very talented Rodel “Magnum Force” Mayol (23-1-0, 18 KOs) tries to unseat the IBF light flyweight champ Ulises “Archie” Solis (24-1-2, 18 KOs) of Mexico on the 4th of August. This fight between the 25-yr-old pugs will serve as one of the appetizers for the WBC lightweight championship showdown between Erik Morales and David Diaz.

BAUTISTA AND PEÑALOSA ION SPOTS TO WIN!

One of the world’s best prospects, undefeated Rey “Boom-Boom” Bautista (23-0-0, 17 KOs), and one of the world’s best technical fighters, Gerry “Fearless” Peñalosa (51-6-2, 34 KOs), hope to close the one-month bonanza with a big bang as they try to snatch WBO titles from Mexican compatriots super bantamweight champ Daniel Ponce De Leon (31-1-0, 28 KOs) and bantamweight king Jhonny Gonzales (34-5-0, 29 KOs), respectively. These bouts will be featured in a blockbuster Golden Boy Promotions fight card dubbed as the “World Cup of Boxing” between Mexico and the Philippines on August 11 in Sacramento, California.

TOP RANK-GOLDEN BOY PACT GOOD FOR PACQUIAO…BUT WHAT ABOUT THE SPORT?

01 July, 2007 by Reylan Loberternos


“PACMAN” BREATHES A MAJOR SIGH OF RELIEF

Manila, RP- After all the drama and suspense that could have rivaled that of “The Sopranos,” Filipino firebomb Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao can now safely say that he’s literally over the hump and can very well look forward to a great future of prizefighting. It took two weeks of court-ordered mediation and an effective mediator in Daniel Weinstein to finally put to rest the longstanding feud between promotional companies Top Rank and Golden Boy. Both parties signed the “peace treaty,” which included a stipulation on confidentiality, last Friday.

FOR THE SPORT… OR JUST ABOUT CASH?

With all the shortchanging that promotional companies have done to the boxing fans over the years, more so recently, charging big while not giving us match-ups that the great majority crave for, it’s hard to imagine if this is even about their “so called” love for the sport. It might interest you to note that what Weinstein, a retired judge, all did was just to make both parties realize the financial burden and opportunity losses that both of them could sustain, unless they settle their differences. And when both parties realized that only their lawyers are laughing their way to the bank, all of a sudden they decided to put the past behind them… or did they really? Bottom line, it’s just business, as usual.

IS THE SETTLEMENT GOOD FOR THE SPORT?

However, amidst all this whining, some good things have somehow surfaced. There would no longer be any reason not to stage marquee match-ups between fighters belonging to Top Rank and Golden Boy. Apart from fights involving Pacquiao, there are equally interesting potential face-offs in other weight divisions that would not have been deemed possible, considering the erstwhile promotional dispute. But when the chips are down, will this sort of tie-up really end up being good for the sport in the long run?

BARRERA WINS THE PACQUIAO LOTTERY!

Already in the twilight of his illustrious boxing career, Mexican superstar Marco Antonio “The Baby-Faced Assassin” Barrera still landed with what could be the biggest fight of his life – financially, that is. Barrera will probably receive a guaranteed purse of not less than $3 million, excluding PPV shares and merchandise sales. Pacquiao, on the other hand, will most likely have the lion’s share that could amount to an assured $5 M – also a career high.

SHOULD WE EXPECT THE SAME RESULT?

Yes and no. Yes, because the vastly improved Pacquiao (compared to the last time these two fighters met) is likely to score a repeat. No, because a surprise is not very evident. In direct contrast to his previous encounter with Pacquiao in November of 2003, Barrera, already way past his prime, is expected to be the overwhelming underdog in this much less intriguing rematch. But who knows? Barrera might have one last secret weapon under his sleeve…or better yet, we might as well consider the fact that two shrewd promotional companies have just joined forces. The inevitable big bucks that a third installment could generate will certainly be welcomed by the whole cast with wide-open arms.

FIGHT WILL DEFINITELY BE IN VEGAS!

The Pacquiao-Barrera rematch has been initially set on October 6 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. This will be the first fight that Top Rank and Golden Boy will co-promote a boxing spectacle since Barrera and Morales locked horns for the third and probably the last time a couple of years back.

”FILIPINO CONNECTION” NOTES

One-time world title challenger Rodel “Magnum Force” Mayol (23-1-0, 18 KOs) has recently secured another crack at a world title, this time against IBF junior flyweight (108 lbs.) champion Ulises “Archie” Solis (24-1-2, 18 KOs) of Mexico, which will serve as curtain raiser of the Erik Morales-David Diaz showdown on the 4th of August. Mayol is the fighter who’s primarily responsible for my interest in the sport. We used to jump off the school dormitory fence (curfew) when we were still in college just to see this very skillful and exciting young fellow knock his opponent out. Here’s a guy who possesses a great combination of power and skill. This is going to be a blast! Better see it to believe it.


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