Sunday, October 22, 2006 Peñalosa faces acid test in crucial US bout today
THE cancellation of Juan Marquez vs. Jimrex Jaca fight gave ex-World Boxing Council super flyweight champion Gerry Peñalosa a chance to crack into the rich US boxing circuit and a possible hunt for another title as he faces former world champion Mauricio Martinez today in El Paso, Texas.
Four fights
The Peñalosa-Martinez fight was moved up into the four fights in pay-per-view, which is now headlined by Daniel Ponce De Leon, who is making another defense of his WBO super bantamweight title against the taller Al Seeger.
Peñalosa, who has been training in the US since August, is fighting a very tough Panamanian opponent who has acquired several titles including the WBO bantamweight belt. The Panamanian boxer is also four years younger than the Filipino ring gladiator.
Peñalosa, who briefly retired from the spot, carries a 50-5-2 record with 33 KOs, while Martinez, the WBO No.1 contender is carrying a 31-6-1 record with 21 KOs.
The Peñalosa-Martinez fight was supposed to be off the PPV event and aired on international TV, but after Jaca failed to fly to the US after failing to get a US visa, the battle of the former champions was elevated into the PPV.
Championship
The other bouts offered on PPV are the WBO NABO super-bantamweight championship between Antonio Escalante and Omar Adorno for 12 rounds and the fight between Juan Lazcano and Manuel Garcia for 10 rounds. (RCM)
