ALDEGUER STILL LOOKING FOR ANSWERS IN BANAL DEBACLE
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 31 Jul 2008
Even as the shock and disappointment over AJ ?Bazooka? Banal?s tenth round knockout at the hands of Panama?s Rafael ?El Torito? Concepcion still linger, respected boxing patron Tony Aldeguer of the famed ALA Gym continues to search for answers to the debacle.
While conceding that both Banal and he himself have been hurt by harsh speculation of so-called experts on the reasons for the 19 year old fighter?s defeat, Aldeguer said they haven?t been able to find the answer up to now but will continue to search for one.
Aldeguer told www.insidesports.ph as well as Viva Sports/ Manila Standard Today that ?only God knows how much we tried to make Banal win that title in terms of his training, diet and mental conditioning.?
He disclosed that Banal sparred over 150 rounds, spent two months in preparation while ?maintaining a daily pulse rate between 34-38 per minute, precisely to monitor that he does not get over-trained.?
Aldeguer said Banal never encountered any weight problem because they provided him with a diet of fresh fruits, vegetables, fish, poultry and cereals.
Banal was also provided with separate living quarters of his own and had his brother as his daily companion. He also was provided an unlimited supply of mineral water and Gatorade.
The ALA Gym patron said they ?thought of everything under the sun? to give Banal the ?best preparation of his life for that big fight.? Posing the question why he lost, Aldeguer replied ?we could not find the answer until now? adding it will surely ease our pain if we justify the loss as ?the will of God? but it will certainly not provide the answer.
However, if there is any consolation, several top sportsmen who are genuine and knowledgeable boxing fans including San Miguel Corporation chairman Eduardo ?Danding? Cojuangco and his brother Henry Cojuangco, Araneta Coliseum owner ?Nene? Araneta and WBC founding secretary general Rudy Salud said they were confident Banal would bounce back and eventually become a world champion.
?Danding? Cojuangco said he was impressed by Banal who was good while both he and Henry Cojuangco noted that Banal appeared to be disoriented during the fight when he sometimes would merely walk away during a break with his mind apparently blank.
Dr. Eduardo De Los Reyes earlier told Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today that if Banal?s potassium levels were very low as reported then he would be ?like a vegetable and his mind blank? which largely accounted for his defeat. Low potassium levels cause weakness, fatigue and muscle cramps which appeared to hit Banal after the first four or five rounds.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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