TREMENDOUS DEMAND FOR WORLD CUP TICKETS
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 03 Jul 2007
There’s a tremendous demand tickets for the Philippines vs Mexico “World Cup” of boxing to be held at the Arco Arena in California on August 11.
The six fights between Filipino and Mexican boxers will he headlined by the WBO Asia Pacific super bantamweight title fight between emerging ring sensation, undefeated Rey “Boom Boom” Bautista (23-0, 17 KO’s) and reigning WBO champion Daniel Ponce De Leon (31-1, 28 KO’s).
The main supporting bout will be the WBO bantamweight title fight between former WBC super flyweight champion Gerry Penalosa and current WBO 118 pound champion Jhonny Gonzalez.
Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer told Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today in an overseas telephone conversation that “the response is excellent. There is a tremendous demand out of Sacramento,” where there is a large population of Filipinos as well as Mexicans.
Schaefer predicted “it will be a great, great night of boxing” at the Arco Arena where Oscar De La Hoya fought once and made a couple of fights along with Don Chargin who is an adviser and according to Schaefer “works very closely with us (Golden Boy) who is from that area and is now running the regular shows in the arena.”
Meantime, Ponce De Leon is coming off a somewhat controversial title defense against Penalosa last March told Felipe Leon on Fight News “I expect to win. I am preparing one hundred percent. Even though we are about a month and a half from the fight, I feel ready and prepared to fight next week, whenever. I am always ready to fight and I am ready to beat Bautista.”
Ponce De Leon was part of the Mexican team that whipped Thailand in the initial staging of the “World Cup” and said he is ready to defend the cup against the Philippines. Other Filipinos seeing action are Z “The Dream” Gorres, Bert Batawang, AJ “Bazooka” Banal and Philippine bantamweight champion Michael Domingo.
Ponce De Leon scored a unanimous twelve round decision over Thailand’s Sod Looknongyangtoy in the “World Cup” in Tucson, Arizona on October 19, 2005 but less than one year later defeated the Thai by a first round knockout.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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