CONCEPCION BLOODIES OTIENO TO SUBMISSION
By Dong Secuya
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 12 Jan 2009
Quezon City -- Showing confidence and calm under pressure, Bernabe Concepcion caused Sande Otieno's corner to call it a night before the start of the 6th round at the historic Araneta Coliseum here tonight to capture the vacant WBC International Featherweight Title before an enthusiastic crowd.
After measuring his opponent in the first half of the first round, Concepcion started to connect with crisp right hand counters in the second half of the round. A hard right to the body staggered Otieno in the 2nd round and followed it up with several hard hits. When it appeared that it will be a short night for Otieno, the Kenyan showed tenacity and heart to make the fight interesting by charging towards Concepcion in the 3rd and 4th rounds cornering Concepcion in ropes several times. Concepcion however showed a lot of class and experience by expertly ducking and avoiding Otieno's onslaught and throwing sharp counters of his own that begun to take its toll on the courageous Kenyan.
In the fifth round, blood was dripping all over Otieno's face due to a cut above his right eye inflicted by Concepcion in the 3rd round and Otieno's nose begun to bleed in the fifth round due to Concepcion's hard rights. Otieno's corner, after consulting with the ring physician and referee Bruce McTavish, decided to stop the contest.
"Otieno's corner was worried about his ward's future as a fighter as the big cut on Otieno's right eye might exacerbate if the fight will go on," referee Bruce McTavish narrarted. "So I called the ring physician to check the cut and we both agreed that the fight should be stopped."
In the main undercard, Sonny Boy Jaro made short work of Ruslee Samoh of Indonesia by scoring a knockout victory at 2:30 in the first round. Another Jaro stable fighter, Denver Cuello, also scored an impressive victory over Indonesian Yanus Emaury via second round TKO victory.
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Concepcion, Jaro and Cuello, who are members of the Iglesia ni Cristo church, climbed the ring each bringing the Iglesia flags and colors. An Araneta employee estimated the crowd to be around 4,000 with about 70% of which were Iglesia members according to an insider.
Concepcion continued his winning streak to 17 and has now upped his record to 28-1-1 with 17 KOs while Otieno suffered the second defeat of his career all in the hands of Filipinos. Otieno lost to Balweg Bangoyan last October 11 in Davao City.
PONCE DE LEON OR STEVE LUEVANO NEXT FOR CONCEPCION
"We are now looking into the possibility of pitting Bernabe against either Daniel Ponce de Leon or Steve Luevano to be added in the March 15 card," Aljoe Jaro, Concepcion's manager, said after the fight. The March 15 card at the Araneta Coliseum was to be headlined by Nonito Donaire against WBO superfly Fernando Montiel of Mexico or another fighter if Montiel could no longer make weight at 115 lbs.
Daniel Ponce de Leon (35-2 31KOs) of Mexico inflicted Rey Baustista's first loss during the Philippines vs Mexico World Cup in Sacramento, CA in Aug. 2007 via a first round stoppage but himself was knocked also out in the first round by the now rising star Juan Manuel Lopez of Puerto Rico. Ponce de Leon won his comeback fight against Damian David Marchiano via 4th round knockout last Nov. 1 in Chihuahua, Mexico. Steve Luevano (36-1-0 15KOs) of Los Angeles, CA is the current WBO Featherweight Champion.
"Either fight for Bernabe [against Ponce de Leon or Luevano] will be exciting and I'm sure it will add more attraction to the March 15 card," Jaro said.
Top photo: Newly crowned WBC International Featherweight title holder Bernabe Concepcion (C) celebrates after Sunday night's victory over Sande Otieno of Kenya. Flanking him are Quezon City mayor Sonny Belmonte (L) and his manager Aljoe Jaro. Photo by Dong Secuya.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Dong Secuya.
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