ALBERT Pagara’s performance last Saturday night was nothing but impressive and his knockout victory over a quality Mexican fighter in Hugo Partida was swift and devastating.
His trainer, Edmund Villamor, lauded his 20-year-old ward’s impeccable performance against a dangerous Mexican, who was rated No. 13 in the World Boxing Council (WBC).
“It was perfect. He really followed the battle plan,” Villamor told Sun.Star Cebu.
Pagara, 21-0 with 15 knockouts, dropped the 26-year-old Partida thrice before the bout was stopped by referee Bruce McTavish in the 1:18 mark of the opening round. He won the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Inter-Continental super bantamweight strap in the process and will soon break into the world rankings.
Though he will be rated in the world, Villamor feels that Pagara still needs more fights before a crack at a world title.
“We must first take it slowly; we will get there,” said Villamor.
However, he believes that Pagara should be fighting former world champions or world-rated fighters from here on.
“I want a fighter who is already established and has a name,” said Villamor. “But that depends on our manager. For us, we’ll just wait and train.”
Pagara’s next big fight might be in California in November in ALA Promotions’ first boxing event in the US, which will be headlined by World Boxing Organization (WBO) light flyweight king Donnie Nietes. (EKA)