THE PANTHER VS THE PRINCE
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 07 Oct 2011
Bacolod City ? ?I am here to change the story,? vowed Shabani ?Black Panther? Madilu during the PINOY PRIDE IX press conference held at the L?Fisher Hotel Thursday afternoon.
The list of Tanzanian boxers getting knocked out here in the Philippines is getting longer. Boxing fans remember names like Obote Ameme, Rashid Ally, Juma Fundi, Mbwana Matumla, Sadiki Abdulazizi, Anthony Mathias, Francis Miyeyusho and Deo Njiku.
The East African fighter wants to erase all that.
?The story of the Tanzanian boxers who all lost here, I want to change that,? Madilu said, ?I have prepared well. I was supposed to fight another boxer but it doesn?t matter who my opponent is, I have traveled far and I will fight who is in front of me in the ring and I will win.?
Madilu (12W-6L-3D, 6 KO?s) is from Morogoro, Tanzania but carries the flag of Kenya, the country of his trainer Paul Otieno.
Having lived in his mother country for two years, I have a fairly good idea of what he was really trying to say; a rare sporting victory would mean more for them.
His opponent is rising superflyweight star ?Prince? Albert Pagara, late substitute for the injured Arthur Villanueva.
Pagara is unbeaten in seven fights with only one of his opponents surviving to hear the judges? scorecards. He was initially penned to face Richard Donaire on this same card but got the call after news of Villanueva?s hand injury broke out.
It is a big break for the young Pagara?s career considering that his fight will be shown live on pay-per-view in Cebu City together with the Ramon Garcia vs Donnie Nietes WBO lt.flyweight title bout and the WBO Asia Pacific bantamweight fight between AJ Banal and Mario Briones.
Pagara is not exactly a stranger to the scrutiny of the fans. As an eight round boxer, he has already fought twice as a main event fighter in boxing cards held in his mother?s hometown of Maasin City.
The teen prospect said that he has been training hard and the change of opponent ? his first foreign foe ? will not affect him. It will be interesting to see if a brighter spotlight will.
Those who religiously follow amateur bouts in Cebu have already spotted Pagara?s potential and it is not just because of his surname and more famous elder brother Jason. Fans and sports scribes who have seen him during weigh-ins know that he radiates confidence; as early as his first pro bout, you can tell he enjoys what he is doing. His opponents can also attest that beneath the boyish grin is a heart of an assassin with a punishing body attack.
Pagara and Madilu will be on the undercard of the biggest fight card held in the Philippines this year; two relatively unknown boxers, who may wind up stealing the spotlight.
PINOY PRIDE 9 is headlined by the WBO light flyweight championship battle between champion Ramon Garcia Hirales of Mexico and challenger Donnie Nietes of the ALA Gym. Nietes? stablemate, AJ Banal will defend his WBO Asia-Pacific bantamweight title against unbeaten Mexican Mario Macias. The official weigh-in will be on October 7 at SM Bacolod and fight day October 8 will be at the University of St.LaSalle Coliseum.
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