Morris East to Promote Boxing In the Philippines Starting April
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 05 Jan 2021
Morris East.
Former world boxing champion now US based trainer and manager Morris East is joining the country's thinning rank of local boxing promoters in a bid to help develop the domestic professional fight sport.
East in a telephone interview said that he has tapped a young Cebu boxing impresario by the name of Edcel Mike Tuñacao to handle all the official paperworks and coordination with the Games and Amusement Board for the issuance of proper license and accreditation to enable him to stage boxing promotions in the country as soon as possible.
He likewise intimated that he has signed up a very promising former amateur boxer named Alec Xhandhre del Rio who he said was a many time regional and national champion whom he plans to develop into at least a world class fighter mainly through exposure in his planned local boxing promotions.
Del Rio was born March 29, 2002 in Sultan Kudarat and as an amateur boxer, logged more than 100 fights winning awards as three times CVIRAA Meet champion, Mayors Cup Mandaue and Leyte Champion, two times Regional Batang Pinoy Champion and two times National Champion.
East said he hopes to stage his initial boxing promotion in Cebu City this April with his newly signed ward Del Rio as top attraction in the main event. He said he plans to hold boxing promotions in other parts of the country as well.
In time, he also hopes to introduce Del Rio and other talented and promising local fighters he could discover and sign up to the lucrative US boxing circuit through the promotional firm of the father and son tandem of Bill and Devin Haney.
Devin Haney is the current WBC lightweight champion whom Morris taught boxing to almost from his childhood and who after becoming world champion has gone to boxing promoting himself with his father.
Morris rates Haney as the best fighter in the new look lightweight division today as he fights in the mold of Floyd Mayweather, Jr. on defense and Sugar Ray Leonard on offense.
"Haney is better than Teofimo Lopez, Tank Davis and Ryan Garcia and this is evidenced among others by the fact that he often gets the better of sparring with Floyd, Jr. and Zab Judah, another of my former top ward who also became world champion," Morris said.
Morris is excited with the prospects in the lightweight division with the return of Japanese Masayoshi Nakatani who gave Lopez his hardest fight prior to Lopez meeting and beating Vasiliy Lomachenko for most of the world titles last year.
Curiously, Morris also gave his take on the situation in the bantamweight division where Filipinos like Johnriel Casimero, Nonito Donaire, Reymart Gaballo and Mike Plania are currently making hay.
According to Morris, Casimero will win over reported next opponent Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux by knockout if they meet.
"Wala na ang dating likas at galaw ni Rigondeaux. Kailangan na niyang makipagsabayan ngayon. Kapag kumunekta ng solid si Casimero, matutulog sigurado yan," Morris predicted adding that if it happens, Naoya Inoue will have no more excuse not to fight Johnriel. "Pag nangyari yun, wala ng iwas si Inoue kay Casimero at baka magharap na sila later this year."
Inoue is reportedly being lined up to face Filipino mandatory challenger Michael Dasmariñas in his next fight.
Morris though sees Mike Plania as the next best Pinoy fighter after Casimero and Donaire with the brightest chance of making good in the division due to his size, fighting heart, skill and punching power. "Malaki si Plania for the bantamweight division, magaling pa," he said.
East said he has long wanted to help in developing local boxing as a way of giving back to the country and the Filipino people for the support and inspiration given him to become the youngest Philippine born world champion himself at the age of 19 years and 1 month in 1992 and among the youngest in the world.
After becoming WBA junior welterweight champion by knocking out Akinobu Hiranaka of Japan, conqueror of the famous Edwin Rosario, Morris was reunited with his American father and settled in the USA upon retirement from boxing at still prime age of 25. He soon became an accomplished trainer handling among others, Zab Judah, Nonito Donaire and the young Devin Haney.
The entry of East to Philippine domestic boxing promotion is a welcome development as Covid-19 pandemic has forced ALA Boxing to close shop and forced many other promotional outfits to lie low thus adversely affecting the lives and livelihood of boxers and others dependent on local professional fight sport.
"Gagawin ko ang lahat sa abot ng aking makakaya kahit ako ay nandito sa Amerika para makatulong sa pagbangon ng Philippine local boxing lalo na sa harap ng hamon ng pandemya," East said in parting.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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