Bantilan shoots for IBO Asia-Pacific crown vs Butar-Butar in Jakarta
By Alex P. Vidal
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 27 Oct 2007
Rex ?Wakee? Salud ward Van ?Holyfield? Bantilan impressed his handlers in the last phase of his sparring session at the Jaro Boxing Gym in Binangonan, Rizal Thursday afternoon engaging RP No. 4 bantamweight contender Edgar Gabjean in a fierce no-holds barred 6-round exchange of fire to the delight of the audience.
?He really is determined to slug it out with (Simson) Butar-Butar with the way he allowed Gabjean to hit him hard in the face and body,? commented Bantilan?s manager Chad Colocado who watched the action together with gym owner Aljoe Jaro who is also boxing manager and promoter.
The 28-year-old townmate of Asia?s first world boxing champion Pancho Villa in Ilog, Negros Occidental, finished the sparring session unmarked, his 10th since he started revving up for the Nov. 5 battle for the vacant IBO Asia-Pacific 130-lb title vs Butar-Butar in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Bantilan (11-0-1, 5 KOs), who stopped Romeo Buhawi in the fourth round in his last fight in February this year in Cebu, is a mainstay of the Wakee Salud Boxing International where he acts as one of the caretakers especially during the recent training in Cebu of Manny Pacquiao.
?Indi ko mag promisa pero tinguhaon ko nga makuha ang korona. Away gina pangita ta mo (I won?t promise anything but I will try my best to get the crown as I am always hankering for a fight),? said Bantilan, bronze medalist in the 1997 1st LGUlympics where he represented Iloilo City.
Colocado admits that Bantilan?s fight with Butar-Butar (16-7, 12 KOs) is not a walk in the park considering that the Indon phenom has scored back-to-back wins over Bohol?s famed boxer Czar Amonsot, the last of which was a brutal one-punch first round knockout in Tagbilaran, Bohol on September 23, 2006.
Butar-Butar?s last fight was a knockout win over Primus Phyton in Jakarta on July 7, 2007.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Alex P. Vidal.
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