Nietes and Melindo: Little Guys Come Up Big
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 22 Mar 2009
Nietes (L) and Melindo.
The minimumweight or strawweight division, whose weight limit for pro boxers is 105 pounds, was created in 1987. The IBF had the first world minimumweight world bout on June 14, 1987 with South Korean Kyung Yun Lee as its first champion. The WBC and WBA followed a few months later with their own champions.
The 108 lb. or junior flyweight division was started in 1975 but the original flyweight or 112 lb. division traces its lineage all the way back to 1897.
Flyweight Pancho Villa (Francisco Guilledo) was the Philippines and Asia?s first world boxing champion. He won the title in 1923 with a seventh round KO of Jimmy Wilde in a fight held in New York. Villa was only 5 foot 1 and if he had fought today I could imagine him just being a minimumweight. Yet, he regularly fought and beat bigger men, even bantamweights.
Two present day Filipino boxers carry on Villa?s tradition of a small man with a huge fighting heart and great skills: WBO mimimumwieght world champ Donnie ?Ahas? Nietes and WBO Asia-Pacific minimumweight titlist Milan Melindo.
Nietes? successful second title defense in Mexico was finally shown on Philippine television 21 days after the actual bout took place. The fight was held at the Auditorio Guelaguetza in Oaxaca.
Nietes immediately sent a strongly worded message in round one when he scored a knockdown against challenger Erik Ramirez. Nietes showed the importance of having sound fundamentals. His punches were accurate and his defense almost impenetrable. Ramirez on the other hand missed a lot with his wide punches.
Ramirez was knocked down again in round five but still got up and tried to make a fight out of it. An overhand right from Nietes in round nine sent the Mexican sprawling on the canvas. The hometown crowd tried to cheer their fighter on but Nietes ended the bout with an exclamation point courtesy of another knockdown in the 12th and final round to win by unanimous decision.
Nietes, who stands 5?3?, scored a giant victory in his challenger?s back yard. The last time a Filipino successfully defended a world title in Mexico was in 1996 when Luisito Espinosa knocked out Alejandro ?Cobrita? Gonzales in 4 rounds in Guadalajara to retain his WBC featherweight title.
Both Nietes and Villa come from Negros Occidental. Donnie?s record is now 24W-1L-3D with 14 KO?s.
Milan Melindo last April 14 fought the biggest battle of his young career when he faced 73 fight veteran former IBF world champ Muhammad Rachman of Indonesia.
It was a thinking man?s fight. It was not enough for Milan to out fight him; he needed to out think him.
Like an old lion not ready to yield to a young cub, Rachman rallied in the middle rounds and showed excellent infighting skills. But Milan?s combination punching was better down the stretch. The 21 year old Melindo became a man overnight and showed poise and the ability to make adjustments against a wily veteran to earn the unanimous decision win.
I approached and congratulated Rachman when he stepped out of the ring for a great fight. It was not just an act of respect. I know what happened that night was going to do wonders for Melindo?s career and also an excellent learning experience.
Melindo, who stands 5?2?, hails from Cagayan de Oro City. He now has a record of 18W-0L with 5 KO?s. Rachman was no foreign patsy. Prior to the bout, Ring Magazine even ranked him number four among the world?s 105 lb. boxers. By virtue of his victory, Melindo is now ranked number 5 by the publication regarded as Boxing?s bible while Rachman dropped to number 6.
The 26 year old Nietes is only ranked number 8 by Ring Magazine. He will need more overseas bouts to get the attention of the foreign press even if his victory in Mexico showed that he can win on the road. But Filipino boxing aficionados already know how good he really is.
WBA champ Roman Gonzales of Nicaragua (22 W-0 L, 20 KO?s) continues to be the Ring?s number one among the minimumweights. It would be a fight fan?s dream come true if either Nietes or Melindo get to have a crack at him.
The ALA management does not want to rush Melindo into a world title fight but I would not be surprised if he gets a shot within the next 12 months. By beating Rachman, Melindo established himself as a legitimate force to reckon with in his division.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rene Bonsubre, Jr..
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