ALBERT PAGARA WORLD'S TOP PROSPECT IN THE SUPERBANTAMWEIGHT DIVISION
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 08 Jan 2016
Prince Albert Pagara, the WBO Youth intercontinental super bantamweight champion and IBF intercontinental superbantamweight champion, will face tough Juan Carlos Sanchez Jr. on February 27, 2016 in the Waterfront Hotel, Cebu City.
Scott Christ of Bad Left Hook described the younger Pagara: "Pagara, 21, is really still a prospect as much as a contender... But this is a good looking young fighter starting to make moves in this division. He's beaten a bunch of veteran guys, including Rodolfo Hernandez, Jesus Rios, and William Gonzalez this year, stopping all three. Obviously none of those are HUGE wins, but he's on his way."
He listed his top five prospects in this division as follows:
1. Albert Pagara (25-0, 18 KO), Philippines
2. Jonathan Guzman (20-0, 20 KO), Dominican Rep.
3. Diego De La Hoya (13-0, 7 KO), Mexico
4. Manuel Avila (19-0, 8 KO), USA
5. Ryo Matsumoto (17-0, 15 KO), Japan
Former IBF super flyweight champion Sanchez, the 24-year-old native of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico has a record of 20-4-1 with 9 knockouts with 36% KO rate. He lost to Cesar Juarez by a unanimous decision in the WBO international superbantamweight title fight.
?He was rated number three until he lost in a close decision to Cesar Juarez, the opponent of Nonito Donaire Jr., for the number one spot in the rankings. Albert (Pagara) needs to go through tough opponents and Sanchez should give him the test he needs,? said Aldeguer as quoted by Cebu Daily News.
Veteran boxing analyst Ronnie Nathanielsz indicated that Pagara, with a 72% KO rate, will battle in a crucial fight against Sanchez. "Prince Albert who engaged Donaire in a terrific sparring session at the ALA Gym in Cebu when they were both preparing for fights, is expected to face an acid test against the Mexican southpaw," wrote Nathanielsz in Boxing Scene.
"I am not afraid of Sanchez being a former world champion," said Pagara. "I'll do my very best to win impressively to get a world title shot."
The Maasin City-born Pagara is now rated No. 6 in The Ring rankings in the superbantamweight division. He is the youngest among the Ring contenders in this division. Donaire is No. 3 while Genesis Servania is No. 4. Guillermo Rigondeaux is the champion in this category.
Undefeated boxer Mark Magsayo will take on Mexican fighter Eduardo Montoya in the supporting event. Other ALA unbeaten boxers KJ Cataraja and Melvin Jerusalem will be featured in the undercard.
Photo shows Albert Pagara with the writer in a visit at the ALA Gym Cebu.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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