INSIDE THE OMEGA GYM OF CEBU
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 19 Jan 2018
MANDAUE CITY, CEBU ? The Omega boxing gym was bustling with activity Thursday afternoon with their boxers back in serious training in preparation for what they expect to be a busy 2018.
The gym had major changes last year in their training staff and had positive results, culminating in Jhack Tepora?s victory in South Africa to capture the WBO Inter-continental featherweight title.
Julius Erving Junco has instituted changes in their training regimen, including adding cross training during weekends. The boxers have added cycling and swimming to their training and even yoga for relaxation.
?I got the idea of using yoga from Floyd Mayweather,? Junco told this writer. ?I did a lot of research on the training methods used by the world class trainers abroad to find out what we can apply to make the training of our boxers more scientific and effective. If we continue to use the old methods, our boxers will stagnate.?
?We also consulted a doctor for adjusting the diet of the boxers,? Junco added. They should not bloat and gain so much weight in between fights. Our weight loss program has also been more scientific. It is harmful for a boxer if he crams and loses a lot of weight in a short period of time.?
The duties of the training staff are now divided with Junco in charge of counterpunching, trainer Jingjing Tepora handling the development of punching power and former national team mainstay Eldo Cortes teaches basic skills and defense.
?Our defense needs some work but it has improved a lot.? Junco stated. ?We didn?t have a boxer knocked out, knocked down, suffered a bad cut since we worked on improving our defensive skills.?
?Kids who want to become amateur boxers can train here for free.? Junco added. ?We hope someday, we can improve the facilities to the point that foreigners will come here to train, not just boxers, but all kinds of athletes.?
World ranked Christian Araneta, who suffered a shoulder injury last June, is back and training with full strength. He had to undergo surgery to repair his injured right shoulder followed by rehab which halted his momentum after winning the WBO Oriental light flyweight title. He was ranked number eight by the WBO at the end of 2017.
?He will be reassessed by his doctor by February and we will see if he is really ready to fight again this March.? Omega Sports Promotions VP Jerome Calatrava told this writer.
?This February we plan to have a small card to give more fights to our boxers who are not yet at the ten round level.? Calatrava stated, ?One of our prospects Tomjune Mangubat, will be fighting for as a ten rounder.?
Mangubat is a 20 year old featherweight with a 9-0, 8KO?s record.
Jhack Tepora, who is ranked number six featherweight contender by the WBO, is also back in training and is being groomed for a world title shot.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rene Bonsubre, Jr..
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