NOTES FROM DUBAI PART II
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 06 Sep 2014
DUBAI,UAE ? The atmosphere was both Pinoy and electric. The Filipino community packed the World Trade Center and cheered their lungs out on fight night. Fight fans were already waiting to get inside as early as 3PM and the long but lively lines greeted the boxing officials and members of the media when they arrived at the venue.
The three ALA boxers were faced with tough battles but they emerged victorious in the end.
?King? Arthur Villanueva and Henry 'El Crespo' Maldonado of Nicaragua engaged in a spine tingling twelve round blood-soaked affair.
In his eagerness to finish Maldonado early, Villanueva got decked briefly in the second round. A brief but embarrassed smile appeared on ?King? Arthur?s face when he stood up. Heavy, back and forth action ensued. Maldonado?s head has cuts on his scalp and forehead. But it was Villanueva?s consistent jab, accuracy and consistency in the championship rounds that got him the split decision win for the IBF International jr.bantamweight belt.
The scores ? Atty. Danrex Tapdasan (Phils.) ? 117-110 and Yongsak Na Songha (Thailand) ? 114-113 both had it for Villanueva while Cherdchaichanon Sricharat had it 114-113 for Maldonado. The referee was Mickey Vann (U.K.) and the IBF fight supervisor was Onesmo Ngowi (Tanzania).
An obviously disappointed Maldonado was in tears in the dressing room. Villanueva on the other hand, soaked in the fans? adulation.
Fans always expect non-stop action from Rey ?Boom Boom? Bautista and his fight against Juan Jose ?Piquet? Martinez of Mexico was no exception. Things always turn violent in a Bautista fight, with the adversaries going for broke trying to land one punch to end it all.
Bautista got the better of Martinez in the fifth, dropping the Mexican. But Bautista couldn?t finish him off and both boxers got cuts ? Martinez on the right eyelid, Bautista also on the right eyelid but it was the clash of heads in the seventh that led to a nasty cut on BoomBoom?s left eyelid.
The fight ended in a technical decision ? Judges Atty.Danrex Tapdasan (67-65) and Salven Lagumbay (68-65) had it for Bautista while Edward Ligas had it even 66-66 giving the Boholano the win. The third man in the ring was veteran referee Bruce McTavish.
The card?s main event saw Genesis ?Azukal? Servania retain his WBO Intercontinental super bantamweight title by TKO against Jose ?Matador? Cabrera of Mexico.
Servania was the stronger fighter and a quick combo sent Cabrera down in the second canto. Cabrera looked ready to call it a day at the end of the third but his trainer pressed him to fight on.
Cabrera landed good counters while Servania was beginning to feel leg cramps nearing the halfway mark. But Servania continued to land the heavier shots and a clash of heads inflicted a cut on Cabrera?s left cheek. At the end of the ninth, Cabreras cornerman signaled to Referee Tapdasan that they will not continue handing Servania the win.
The WBO bout was supervised by WBO Asia-Pacific chief Leon Panoncillo.
DUBAI?S ROUND 10 BOXING CLUB SWEEP UNDERCARD MATCHES
Filipino transplant Larry Abarra gave an entertaining and impressive performance in winning all four rounds against Chatpayak Nuengkawkawhok of Thailand.
Deo Kizito of Uganda also won by unanimous decision against Anusher Abdullaev of Uzbekistan while in the opening bout of the night, Mohammad Akram of Syria beat Kong Windy Sports of Thailand by TKO in the second round.
GAB chairman Juan Ramon Guanzon and GAB boxing division chief Dr. Nasser Cruz supervised the undercards.
MORE PINOY PRIDE
With their enthusiastic support, the fans here in Dubai sent to message to ALA Promotions and ABS-CBN ? They want more PINOY PRIDE events in this city. The fact a lot of fans had to be turned away underscores their enthusiasm.
The post-fight party at ROCKY?S BAR inside the Regent Palace Hotel felt like being in Malate. It was a moment when Filipinos made their presence felt.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rene Bonsubre, Jr..
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