PINOY PRIDE XXV: NIETES, MELINDO AND BAUTISTA SEE ACTION AT THE MOA
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 12 Apr 2014
CEBU CITY ? A champion fighting to stay on his throne, a former title challenger trying to return to the world championship stage and a crowd drawer hoping to rekindle the fire. These are the storylines for the 25th edition of Pinoy Pride set on May 10 at the Mall of Asia Arena.
WBO light flyweight world champion Donnie ?Ahas? Nietes will face a familiar foe, Moises Fuentes of Mexico in an intriguing rematch. Their twelve round battle last year ended in a majority draw but both camps claimed victory.
Nietes has been training hard for this fight and spent a month in the U.S to look for more quality sparmates.
?I have reviewed the video of that fight.? Nietes told Cebu sportswriters in a press conference held Friday at the Rajah Park Hotel. ?I am prepared to face him again, if the knockout presents itself, if I hurt him early, I will knock him out. If not, I am prepared to go another twelve rounds.?
Nietes has the quite self-belief of a veteran. He has reigned as a world champion over two divisions since September 2007. A win against Fuentes will put him closer to Philippine boxing?s most hallowed record ? the seven year three month reign of Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde as world junior lightweight champion.
Milan ?El Metodico? Melindo is set for his second fight since losing to WBO/WBA flyweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada of Mexico last year in Macau. Last November 30,Melindo scored a lopsided twelve round unanimous decision victory over another Mexican, Jose Alfredo ?Torito? Rodriguez.
Melindo, who holds the WBO International flyweight title, is penned to fight Mexican Martin Tecuapetla. Melindo repeated his past statements that he has learned from his first career loss. He remains one of the better world title hopefuls in the country and fight fans continue to follow his progress.
After a short lived retirement, Rey ?BoomBoom? Bautista will be pitted against another Mexican, Sergio Villanueva. In April of last year, Bautista lost a split decision to Jose ?Negro? Ramirez of Mexico in Davao City. ALA Promotions subsequently announced his retirement but after months of soul searching, Bautista decided to return to the sport that he loves.
And it is not for the money. ?BoomBoom? may not have won a world title but he is a financial success story. He owns vans that tourists use to travel around his native island of Bohol.
?I started boxing at a very young age,? Bautista said, ?I got bored with the routine. But after I decided to take a rest I learned that I still love boxing.?
ALA Promotions CEO and Pres. Michael Aldeguer cited Bautista?s crowd drawing power.
?BoomBoom will always give the fans their money?s worth.? Aldeguer said.
?The earthquake did not seriously affect my business,? Bautista told this writer after the press conference, ?We can still travel using the major roads. It?s just that old churches were destroyed by the quake, and these churches are among those that tourists come to see.? Bohol was the center of a magnitude 7.2 quake last October.
Nietes, Melindo and Bautista also talked about how they invested their earnings. The ALA boxers have always been guided and taught how to save their money and invest wisely. Nietes also owns his own house and vehicles - both for personal use and those being used for his business. In a country where stories of boxers going broke are so common, this was refreshing to hear.
Aldeguer stated that he has always looked at the bigger picture in promoting fights; not just in terms of wins and losses but in promoting Philippine boxing as a whole and preparing for the post-Pacquiao era.
L-R: Trainer Edmund Villamor, WBO world champion Donnie Nietes, ALA Promotions President Michael Aldeguer, Milan Melindo, Boom-Boom Bautista and trainer Edito Villamor pose during Friday's launching of 'Pinoy Pride XXV' at the Rajah Park Hotel in Cebu City. Photos by Dong Secuya.
The Pinoy Pride series has consistently scored high in terms of television ratings. Even when AJ Banal lost his title shot against Pungluang Sor Singyu in 2012, that fight landed a number one spot on national TV with 19.1 percent.
The first Nietes vs Fuentes fight ? PINOY PRIDE XVIII ? was at 17.1 percent. Nietes? last defense against Sammy Gutierez of Mexico soared to 20.4 percent last November.
PINOY PRIDE XXV: THE REMATCH FOR GLORY will be the second Pinoy Pride event set at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rene Bonsubre, Jr..
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