PE?ALOSA PICKS MARES OVER ROCHA FOR TITLE DEFENSE
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 02 Sep 2008
World Boxing Organization bantamweight champion Gerry Pe?alosa has picked undefeated 22 year old Mexican Abner Mares over Nestor Rocha for his next title defense.
The Mares showdown is a mandatory title defense and Pe?alosa is hoping the fight can be on the Manny Pacquiao-Oscar De La Hoya undercard at the MGM Grand on December 6.
Pe?alosa told www.insidesports.ph, Manila Standard and Viva Sports that his manager Billy Keane had called him and said there were two offers on the table from Golden Boy Promotions.
1. To defend his title against Nestor Rocha for a purse of $150,000, possibly on the undercard of the IBF/IBO welterweight title fight between Paul Malignaggi and Britain's Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton at the MGM Grand on November 22.
2. Face No. 1 ranked Abner Mares who has a record of 10 knockouts in 17 wins with no defeats also at the MGM Grand but on the megabuck fight between Filipino ring idol Manny Pacquiao and "The Golden Boy" Oscar De La Hoya for a much bigger purse of $250,000.
Pe?alosa, the 36 year old southpaw with a record of 53-6-2 with 36 knockouts said his choice was Mares, adding ?I am confident I can beat him.?
Pe?alosa was earlier scheduled to fight Rocha in Tubod, Lanao del Norte but the plan was scuttled after trouble broke out in the region.
Pe?alosa who won the world title with a stunning one-punch knockout of Jhonny Gonzales in the Philippines vs Mexico World Cup and then successfully defended his title over former world champion Ratanachai Sor Vorapin via an eighth round TKO at the Araneta Coliseum last April 6.
Pe?alosa realizes that if he fights on the Pacquiao-De La Hoya card he will be pushed out of the limelight but the huge pay-per-view audience and the purse would make it worthwhile.
Mares, a 2004 Olympian scored a second round TKO over Filipino Diosdado Gabi last March 15. He is coming off a ten round unanimous decision over Jonathan Arias and is regarded as one of the most promising young fighters in the stable of Golden Boy Promotions.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:
Smarts over power
By Joaquin Henson, Tue, 16 Sep 2025HALL OF FAME FLIES FLAGS AT HALF-STAFF FOR TWO-DIVISION CHAMPION RICKY HATTON
Tue, 16 Sep 2025Kazakhstan tops the medal table at the inaugural World Boxing Championships 2025 thanks to victory in the final bout of the competition
Tue, 16 Sep 2025THRILLA IN MANILA GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY 13: JOE FRAZIER’S HUMBLE BEGINNINGS AS AN AMATEUR FIGHTER
By Maloney L. Samaco, Mon, 15 Sep 2025A New King, A New Challenger: Turki Alalshikh Proposes Crawford-Benavidez While Canelo Alvarez Faces Defeat with Humility
By Dong Secuya, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Highly Questionable Title Eliminator
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Yoseline Perez Earns Silver Medal at Inaugural World Boxing Championships
Mon, 15 Sep 202521-year-old Filipino wins at Germany rapid chess tournament
By Marlon Bernardino, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Nagoya Nightmare: Naoya Inoue Notches One-Sided Decision over Murodjon Akhmadaliev
Mon, 15 Sep 2025Inoue’s Philippine Connection: Which Pinoy Super Bantamweight Could Challenge “The Monster?”
By Carlos Costa, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Yoseline Perez Advances to the Finals at the World Boxing Championships Perez Set to Face Chinese Taipei’s Hsiao-Wen Huang for 54-Kilogram World Title
Mon, 15 Sep 2025Canelo Gets Outboxed, Loses Undisputed Title to Crawford
By Carlos Costa, Sun, 14 Sep 2025A Masterpiece of Boxing: Terence Crawford Dethrones Canelo Alvarez in Historic Showdown
By Dong Secuya, Sun, 14 Sep 2025LEWIS CROCKER IS CROWNED THE NEW IBF WORLD WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION
Sun, 14 Sep 2025Battle of Undefeated: Callum Walsh Vanquishes Fernando Vargas Jr.
By Dong Secuya, Sun, 14 Sep 2025