DAVAO WELCOMES ?PINOY PRIDE?
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 18 Apr 2013
DAVAO CITY - WBO International featherweight titlist and ALA Promotions? top crowd drawer Rey ?Boom Boom? Bautista and Jose ?Negro? Ramirez of Mexico faced members of the sports media from Davao and Cebu during the final press conference held today at the Royal Mandaya Hotel.
Bautista (34W(25 KO?s)- 2L), who hails from Candijay, Bohol, will make the first defense of the title he won last October by split decision against Daniel Ruiz of Mexico at the Mall of Asia Arena.
ALA Promotions CEO Michael Aldeguer thanked the people of Davao and the media for their support.
?This will be the first big boxing event in Davao since Manny Pacquiao fought here ten years ago,? ALA Promotions CEO Michael Aldeguer said, ?We did not expect the support from the people of Davao and the media. This is the third highest Pinoy Pride event in terms of ticket sales.? In 2002, fight fans in Davao saw Pacquiao, who was then IBF super bantamweight champion, knocking Thai challenger Fahprakorb Rakkiat-Gym into submission at 2:46 of the first round. They will expect similar fireworks this Saturday.
Ramirez (24W (15 KO?s)- 3L) will be fighting out of Mexico for the first time and is coming off wins last year against Rene Ruiz (KO5) and Sergio Lopez (UD8) in his hometown of Mexicali, Baja California. Bautista is ranked number four by the IBF and WBO.
?We will assess BoomBoom?s performance in this fight,? Aldeguer said, ?We may get him to fight in an IBF eliminator. On the WBO side, Donaire will be facing Juan Manuel Lopez but we did send feelers if it was possible for Bautista to face Juanma.?
?I have already invaded Davao and the Philippines. After beating Bautista, I will invade the world. I will be a world champion.? Ramirez vowed. ?I have trained for three months and sparred with three champions in Mexico.?
Bautista brushed off the stories that Ramirez got tips from Bautista?s conqueror, Daniel Ponce de Leon. Ramierez did say that he will target Bautista?s jaw.
ALA Gym trainer Edito Villamor and Mexican trainer Miguel Francisco Martinez Obeso both said that their boxers will have no problems making 126 lbs during the official weigh-in scheduled Friday noon at SM City Davao.
Rocky Fuentes of Cebu City is set to face Juan ?Loquito? Kantun (20W (15 KO?s)-3L-3D) of Yucatan in a ten round non-title contest. Fuentes (34W(20 KO?s)? 6L-2D), is the reigning OPBF flyweight champion, and is ranked in the top five by the WBO, WBA and WBC and number seven by the IBF.
Both Bautista and Fuentes stated that the shocking losses of Philippine boxing?s ?Big Three? ? Manny Pacquiao, Brian Viloria and Nonito Donaire- has fired them up to train harder and restore our pride.
Mark Vincent Bernaldez (9W-0L, 5 KO?s) of the ALA Gym will replace Lorenzo Villanueva of the Braveheart Stable as the opponent of Indonesian Arief ?The Ice? Blader (17W-9L-1, 6 KO?s). Villanueva was reported to have suffered an injury during training.
Bernaldez said that he will have no problems because he has already been training for a scheduled fight elsewhere.
In a match that could possibly steal the show, OPBF super flyweight champion ?King? Arthur Villanueva (20W(11KO?s)-0L) of the ALA gym will defend his title against challenger Marco Demecillo (18W(14 KO?s)-0L-1D) of the RWS Gym. Both stated that they trained hard for this fight knowing that one will leave the ring with his first career loss.
Demecillo will have an added boost in his corner in the person of Manny Pacquiao?s assistant trainer, Nonoy Neri, who will match wits with Edito and Edmund Villamor.
PINOY PRIDE 19:MEXICAN INVASION will be on Saturday at the USEP Gym.
Bautista answers questions from the media.
Jose 'Negro' Ramirez.
Fuentes and Kantun.
Villanueva and Demecillo.
Tomorrow's particpants pose during today's presscon.
Team Demecillo: Nonoy Neri, Marco Demecillo and Willie Flores.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rene Bonsubre, Jr..
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