PROSPECT TO WATCH: JEO SANTISIMA
By Dong Secuya
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 15 Apr 2016
Santisima.
CEBU ? 19 year old Jeo Santisima of Masbate came into scene like a lightning bolt when he knocked out highly regarded slugger Marco Demecillo of Iligan City last Feb. 27 at the Waterfront Hotel in the aptly titled event 'Stars of Future' on Pinoy Pride 35 headlined by up and coming starts Albert Pagara and Mark Magsayo. Santisima bucked a second round knockdown to stop Demecillo in the sixth round.
Santisima (9-2-0, 8KO) will return to action against Tabthong Tor Buamas (14-3-0, 12KO) of Thailand in an 8-round super bantamweight bout on the undercard of the highly anticipated Donaire-Bedak WBO super bantamweight world title fight on April 23 at the Cebu City Sports Center.
After a majority decision loss to Marlon Arcilla at the Hyatt Hotel in Manila on May 14, 2014, Santisima, nicknamed 'Santino' (Saint), stopped his next seven opponents, the reason why he got the Demecillo assignment, where he passed with flying colors.
?We were impressed by his knockout wins, especially against veteran Jerry Nardo,? ALA Gym head trainer Edito Villamor told Philboxing. ?So we wanted to test him and gave him a real live opponent in Demecillo,? Villamor said. Santino stopped Nardo (21-9-0) in the 2nd round on Dec. 30, 2015 and he also stopped two erstwhile undefeated fighters before that in Allan Alberca and Peter Apolinar who both sported a 5-0-0 win-loss-draw records.
The second of all male six children of Alex and Emily Santisima of Aroroy, a municipality north of Masbate City, Santino started boxing at age 16. Alex, it seemed, wanted his sons to box as he taught his eldest son Aldrin the brutal art and later brought him to the ALA gym in Cebu where Aldrin trained and fought in the amateurs. Later Santino joined his elder brother at the ALA Gym and after Aldrin went back home and left boxing, Satino stick it out, fought in the amateurs and turned pro in August, 2013.
Santisima said staying and training at the ALA gym forces you to improve your skills. ?You have to spar with the pros, bigger than you are and much better than you are,? Santisima told Philboxing. ?Kon dili ka makamao, makulatahan ka (if you don't improve your skill, you will get beat up),? Santisima said.
He has sparred regularly with Albert Pagara and Mark Magsayo, among others, and he also sparred a couple of rounds with Nonito Donaire Jr when Donaire trained in Cebu during his fight against Anthony Settoul.
Santisima said he idolizes Donaire and hope to be in Donaire's level in the future.
?I hope one day I'll be fighting the very best in my weight division,? Santisima said.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Dong Secuya.
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