WBO HONORS LIGHT FLYWEIGHT CHAMPION DONNIE?AHAS? NIETES
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 11 Jul 2015
World Boxing Organization president Francisco ?Paco? Valcarcel has made his fourth visit to the Philippines lending prestige to the 7th title defense of light flyweight champion Donnie ?Ahas? Nietes against former WBO/IBF minimumweight champion and mandatory challenger Francisco Rodriguez by serving as fight supervisor.
But the more important mission was to honor Nietes with a fabulous diamond-studded ring for his remarkable achievement of having a total of ten successful title defenses as a minimum and light flyweight champion which placed him alongside eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao as the only other Filipino champion to receive the award.
Valcarcel whose ties to the Philippines and Philippine boxing have been strengthened by the fact that his son is married to a Filipina, recalled that when Pacquiao fought Miguel Cotto and he expected his grand-daughter being Puerto Rican to cheer for Cotto but was surprised to see his granddaughter cheering for Pacquiao which was when he quipped ?she is 60 percent Filipino.?
The visit of the WBO president demonstrated the organization?s respect for Nietes? exploits and a recognition of his greatness.
WBO President Paco Valcarcel puts on the ring on Nietes? finger.
A close up of Nietes?s WBO ring.
In presenting the ring to Nietes before a huge crowd after Friday?s official weigh-in Valcarcel said ?I have a lot of respect for Donnie because he was also our champion at 105 pounds. I promised to be here. He also broke a record of a famous Filipino fighter, Hall of Famer Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde (as the longest reigning Filipino world champion). I believe that he?ll get inducted in the Hall of Fame after he retires. He is a great guy and a great champion.?
Valcarcel revealed that only some of the greatest names in boxing had been given a similar honor including Mexican legends Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez, Britain?s Joe Calzaghe and Oscar de la Hoya.
Nietes won the vacant WBO minimum weight belt in 2007 with a unanimous decision over then unbeaten Pornsawan Porpramook of Thailand and defended the title four times, three of them in the hometown of his Mexican opponents.
Fighting before a hometown crowd in Bacolod City for a change, Nietes, won the light flyweight title with a unanimous twelve round decision over Mexico?s Ramon Garcia-Hirales in 2011.
He has defended it six times in a total of 10 title defenses at 105 and 108 pounds and is favored to make another successful defense against the cocky Rodriguez on Saturday night at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino in ?Pinoy Pride XXXI?, in a highly successful partnership between the famed ALA Promotions under its youthful president Michael Aldeguer and the giant broadcast network ABS-CBN.
The fights will be telecast at 10:15 a.m. on Sunday over Channel 2 and at 6:00 p.m. over ABS-CBN Sports and Action.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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