QUEZON City - –The months of waiting for Ray “Boom-Boom” Bautista’s ring return following his defeat in the US last August will end today at noon as he faces Mexican toughie Antonio “Barrio” Meza for the WBO Inter Continental super bantamweight title at the Araneta Coliseum.
“Watch me! Watch the new Boom-Boom and you will be surprised. The hard work at the gym and sparring with excellent fighters and the loss gave me emotional motivation to become a better fighter. Somebody will fall and I can assure you that it won’t be me,” Bautista told Sun.Star-Cebu after the official weigh in.
Both Bautista and Meza weighed in at 121 pounds in yesterday’s official weigh in supervised by WBO vice president Rudy Paz, WBO Asia-Pacific chairman Leon Panoncillo Jr.
Unlike before, when Bautista will be smoking hot when the bell ring, this time Bautista will be sizing up Meza and will try to set up his opponent into a trap.
“I always emphasized to him to be patient, relaxed, focused on the fight and of course, the defense. Never forget the defense,” ALA Gym chief trainer Edito Villamor said.
Bautista is out to prove that he is a different fighter from the boxer who lost in just one round to Daniel Ponce de Leon last August.
“This is what we have waited for so long. Now it’s here. Now Boom-Boom will prove to anyone that he had matured and he already knows his mistakes and it won’t happen again. Now he knows how to be patient and to set up his opponent. Boom-Boom is now a different fighter but still with the same intensity on his punches,” said his manager Michael Aldeguer. But Meza, however, was so confident that it worried Villamor for a bit.
“Look at him he is very confident, relaxed and very determined. While for us it is now or never, the pressure is on us. But I can assure you mentally and physically this is no problem on Boom-Boom and he is hungry to be back at the top,” said Villamor.
And while Bautista was resting in his room at the Trader’s Hotel in Pasay City,after eating his first-ever heavy meal after months of training, Meza and his trainer Edgar Cardenas were at the lounge surfing the net, chatting with his friends back in Mexico.
Meanwhile, AJ “Bazooka” Banal, the youngest but the most dangerous fighter in the card was also composed and very confident after the weigh in.
Banal and his opponent Jovany “Bambino” Soto of Mexico both weighed at exactly 115 pounds for the scheduled 10-round duel for the WBO Youth super flyweight title.
“All I can say is that I’m ready. No prediction and no warning. Let’s just see what will happen on the ring,” Banal quickly replied.
Meantime, Third Force president Noli Eala said they are on target.
“I am very happy. I promised a show of shows and here it is. This is the day of celebration. A celebration because Filipinos will be recognized worldwide (in promoting international boxing). And the turnout of the gates is very promising.
Tickets are selling briskly,” Eala said.
Other fights featured in the “Payback: Resbak Para sa Kababayan” are Milan Melindo (105 pounds) vs. Jack Amisa (105) of Indonesia for the WBO Asia-Pacific minimum-weight title; Michael Domingo (119) vs. Anthony Mathias (118) of Tanzania for 10 rounds; Rocky Fuentes (113) vs. Richie Mepranum (112) for eight rounds.
The fight will officially start at 9 a.m. and will be broadcast live over ABC-5 and can be viewed live on the internet via www.netvision.com.ph. (RCM)
