MANILA, 30 August — Former world champion Gerry Peñalosa is hot on trail to reclaiming the world boxing crown he rightfully deserves.
Ex-owner of the coveted World Boxing Council (WBC) super flyweight title, Peñalosa has just proven to every Tom, Dick and Harry that he remains the hottest campaigner in his ranks today.
The 30-year-old Filipino southpaw scored an impressive technical knockout win over challenger Seiji Tanaka at the Blaisdell Araneta in Honolulu, when his Japanese opponent failed to come out for the eighth round to retain the WBC International super flyweight belt.
It was Peñalosas fourth defense of the so-called "International" title he won on a sixth-round stoppage of Pone Saengmorakot two years ago. The victory sealed Peñalosas third attempt to regain the WBC 115-pound crown he lost to In Joo Cho in 1999.
Displaying razor-sharp form, Peñalosa completely dominated an interesting bout with his aggressive style and mighty hands, often connecting with mean combinations that took their toll on the young Japanese.
The 25-year-old Tanaka slugged it out until the bitter end. He was badly outclassed as Peñalosa zipped combinations from all angles and dazzled his opponent with cat-quick footwork.
There were no knockdowns in the scheduled 12-round bout but Peñalosa had Tanaka on the verge of collapse on several occasions. Referee Abe Pacheco signaled the end of the contest as Tanaka surrendered on his stool in the eight round.
Tanaka was described by Peñalosas manager lawyer Rudy Salud as "a dead ringer" for world champion Masamori Tokuyama, who has been mandated by the WBC to give the Filipino champion a title rematch on Nov. 8 in Japan.
Salud said Tanaka had "the same style as Tokuyama with quickness and the same kind of punching power."
The only difference was that Tanaka, unlike Tokuyama, is a southpaw. Peñalosa lost to Tokuyama on a disputed 12-round decision in Yokohama last year.
Peñalosas manager Rudy Salud protested the verdict, pointing out that referee Larry OConnell failed to penalize Tokuyama for repeated head butting which opened six cuts on his wards face.
WBC president Jose Sulaiman upheld the protest, reinstated Penalosa as the No. 1 contender, and ordered Tokuyama to stake the crown once more against Peñalosa in a mandatory defense.
Clearly, Penalosa was a far different fighter from the one who won the North American Boxing Federation super flyweight title via a unanimous decision over Mexicos Oscar Andrade last May 24 in a bout that disappointed Salud because the Filipino pugilist lacked of "killing instinct" and aggression.
Peñalosa left Manila last April to train at Freddie Roachs Wild Card gym in Hollywood. He honed his skills under Roachs supervision and went through grueling sparring sessions with the likes of Mexican Carlos (El Terrore) Madrigal and Hawaii-born Filipino Brian Viloria.
Roach, who also trains International Boxing Federation (IBF) superbantamweight titlist Manny Pacquiao, predicted Peñalosa will beat Tokuyama in their rematch.
After four months of strength-sapping training under the watchful eye of Roach, Peñalosa made true to his promise to Salud to carry the fight to his opponent and connected with some vicious body shots.
After the fight, which Roach promised would surprise fight fans, he said Penalosa still needs "to continue working hard" in preparation for the wily Tokuyama, who has improved with every fight.
"Peñalosa has to make some adjustments," said Roach, pointing out that his left hook and left straight "were short of their target" against the rangy Tanaka who is built like Tokuyama.
Salud flew to Honolulu to be at special ringside to see for himself whether his fighter had changed and improved his defensive style, which marked his title fight against Andrade.
Salud said he was "80 percent satisfied" even as he pointed out that the badly battered Tokuyama "is a hard man to beat."
Even promoter Gabriel (Bebot) Elorde Jr. immediately noticed the changes in Peñalosas fighting style, saying he dominated the one-sided fight with his aggressive style and lightning-quick combinations.
Tanaka, a stablemate of Tokuyama was specially selected in order to provide Peñalosa with an ideal tune-up bout prior to his rematch with the Japan-born North Korean.
With his victory, Peñalosa jacked up his record to 46-4-2 with 31 KOs while Tanaka dropped to a 11-5 with 3 KOs.
Aside from Peñalosa, Tanaka has met only one Filipino in his career Ricky Protacio who lost on points in Osaka in December 2000.
Tanaka was only 12 years old when Peñalosa made his pro debut in 1989. Among Peñalosas victims were Tanakas countrymen Hiroshi Kawashima and Keiji Yamaguchi.
Tanaka was coming off an impressive fifth round knockout over Thailands tough Prabpram Khongpajon last March 23 following another impressive win over countryman Keiji Fujiwara, who had a record of 22-3.
Peñalosa won the WBC diadem in 1997 then lost it in his fourth defense to In Joo Cho on a disputed split decision a year later.
In January 2000, Peñalosa tried to regain the crown from Cho but lost on another controversial split decision in Seoul.
Cho was eventually dethroned by Tokuyama.
Peñalosa is booked to face Tokuyama for the WBC crown in Osaka, Japan, on Nov. 8. But the fight is contingent on Tokuyama beating Mexican challenger Erick Lopez in Saitama, Japan, this week.
Tokuyama is expected to have no trouble in beating the challenger, thereby setting up the much-awaited showdown with Peñalosa who is rated no. 1 by the WBC.
In the undercard, WBC International lightflyweight champion Juanito Rubillar knocked out Takayuki Korogi of Japan in the third round.
What stole the shows limelight in Elordes card was the rousing three-round exhibition between International Boxing Federation (IBF) super bantamweight king Manny Pacquiao and former World Boxing Association (WBA) junior featherweight champion Jesus Salud.
Both brawlers, wearing headgear and sparring gloves, mixed it up from start to finish, much to the delight of the sellout crowd.
Interestingly, Salud, an Ilocos Sur-born, Hawaii-raise fighter, said he was surprised Pacquiao took the match seriously.
Salud said: "I went in to have some fun and wanted to put on a show for the crowd, but he took it a little more seriously than me. He was awkward, and throwing punches from the hip, so it was hard to familiarize myself with the style. I could have prepared myself better."
Most ringsiders thought Pacquiao emerged victorious in the match.
Although Pacquiao missed a lot in the opening round, he got his rhythm in the second canto. Pacquiao was too quick for Salud, and he connected on a variety of punches and combinations.
Salud spent six years in the Philippines before his parents moved to Honolulu. He was born in May 1963 in the town of Sinait.
He held the World Boxing Association (WBA) junior featherweight title briefly in 1989.
"The Hawaiian Punch," Salud won the WBA plum by whipping Juan Jose "Dinamita" Estrada en route to a ninth-round disqualification at the Forum in Los Angeles. The WBA took his title away when he failed to agree for a mandatory defense in Colombia.
