ALA: PHILIPPINE BOXING NOT YET READY TO LET GO OF PACQUIAO
By Dong Secuya
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 22 Sep 2008
CEBU CITY -- Philippine boxing's primary patron Antonio Lopez Aldeguer of the famed ALA Gym of Cebu has indicated that Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao is still very much needed to stay in the scene in order for the momentum of Philippine boxing that it has gained in recent years will be sustained.
In a wide-ranging discussion with the author while watching the Mandaue card Saturday night, the amiable Aldeguer, popularly known as ALA, whose passion for boxing is difficult to match, admitted that "we needed someone to come forward to carry the torch before Pacquiao leaves the scene."
"It could be Boom-Boom or [Bernabe] Concepcion or Donaire or whoever... but we need someone who we can idolize in order for the sport to remain popular," says Aldeguer who as a teenager had to save enough money by riding third-class boat rides to Manila in order to be at ringside for the 'Flash' Elorde bouts.
"Just like in basketball, we had Jaworski in the Philippines and Michael Jordan in the NBA and now we have [Lebron] James ... these are the guys who capture the imagination of the ordinary fan and pushes the sport to move forward," Aldequer would say.
I interjected that this is precisely what the heavyweight division lacks, a recognizable name that the ordinary fan can identify to which Aldeguer was quick to point the blame to Don King, the flambouyant American promoter, who he said "had cornered all the big names of the division under his promotion and the result was the lack of real competition."
He also warned that the way things are shaping up with Golden Boy Promotions, we may end up in the same boat. "As long as Bob Arum is in the scene, it's all good but if Arum is gone we may end up with a monopoly which is bad for the sport."
Aldeguer also noted that two things happened in the Philippines that thrust boxing into the limelight, "Of course one is Manny Pacquiao and the other is Philboxing.com. I'm not sure if boxing could pick up the way it did if we had only Manny Pacquiao. I'm sure Philboxing is a big part of it."
"We need at least two more years," Aldeguer would say going back to the subject of how long can we develop another Filipino star which has become an issue in lieu of Manny Pacquiao's pronouncements of an impending retirement.
Whether the Philippines can develop another star who can carry the torch that Manny Pacquiao spectacularly lighted up in recent years or if the Philippines would degenerate back to the dimmed past where boxing was pushed back to the backround, is a development worth watching for everyone who got some interest in the Philippine boxing scene.
Top photo: Manny Pacquiao raises his hands in victory after he defeated David Diaz of Chicago for the WBC lightweight belt last June.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Dong Secuya.
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