Plania vows to defy odds
By Joaquin Henson
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 17 Jun 2020
Plania at Monday's weighin in Las Vegas.
It will take a $550 bet to win $100 if WBO No. 1, IBF No. 2 and WBC No. 9 bantamweight Joshua Greer, Jr. beats Filipino Mike (Magic) Plania in a 10-round bout at the MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas this morning (Manila time). That makes Greer a 5-1 favorite. But Plania isn’t fazed. The time has come to step up and the General Santos City fighter won’t let the opportunity to shine in a televised Top Rank show slip away.
“Ito ang pinakamalaking test para sa akin,” Plania told The Star in a message. “Higit sa four months na ako sa US at miss ko na ang pamilya ko, lalo na ang isang anak ko na babae. Itong laban inaalay ko una sa lahat sa Panginoon at sa aking pamilya at sa mga taong naniniwala sa akin at sa ating bayan.” A $100 wager on Plania to win will earn $375.
Writer Brent Brookhouse predicted Greer to stop Plania in six. “Greer’s speed will kill in the fight,” he said in cbssports.com. “Greer hasn’t put together a complete fight in his two most recent outings (struggling to decision wins over Nikolai Potapov and Antonio Nieves) which opens the door to an upset. There’s always danger of an upset in a fighter who thinks he’s slick but gets hit far too much but this probably isn’t going to be that night.” Dylan Bowler, writing in sportsbettingdime.com, said, “Plania has never been finished with strikes as a professional (but) I think that will change and I can see Greer scoring a TKO via a high volume of strikes inside the distance.”
While Greer is known for his fast hands and work rate, he’s also “very hittable” because of a “leaky defense,” said Brookhouse. Greer, 26, has been floored thrice in his career by Jose Luis Gallegos, Xavier Montelongo and Filipino Giovanni Escaner although he got up to win each time. Greer’s suspect chin is a point of encouragement for Plania. “Ang napansin ko kay Greer ay pag tinatamaan sa panga, nasasaktan kaya kailangan ng power shot sa laban na 'to,” said Plania.
Before flying to Las Vegas last week, Plania trained in Miami with Cuban Moro Fernandez. “Ang natutunan ko kay Moro ay kailangan ng timing, huwag mang-gigil at more combinations,” said Plania whose record is 23-1, with 12 KOs compared to Greer’s 22-1-1, with 12 KOs. Plania’s only loss was a decision to former WBA bantamweight champion Juan Carlos Payano in Hollywood in 2018 but he floored the Dominican Republic veteran in the third round. Plania’s manager J. C. Manangquil of Sanman Promotions said the defeat was a “good learning experience.” “Mike knocked down Payano and boxed him for 10 rounds,” said Manangquil. “He was inexperienced that time and fought a good world champion. He was winning early then Payano’s experience showed and he adjusted. Mike’s best showing so far was his win over Nicaragua’s Giovanni Gutierrez for the IBF North American superbantamweight crown in Miami last December. Gutierrez is a good boxer and was undefeated coming from decent wins.”
Plania, 23, is the first Filipino to see action in the ring anywhere in the world since the pandemic struck. There will be no live audience but Plania said it won’t be an issue. “Kahit walang manunood na maraming tao, focus lang ako sa gameplan,” he said. At the weigh-in, Greer tipped the scales at 120 pounds and Plania, 119.5.
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