By Ronnie Nathanielsz

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum has committed to support fighters from the famed ALA Gym along with the giant broadcast network ABS-CBN which covers their big fight cards mainly at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino in Cebu and in Tagbilaran City, Bohol.

Prior to his departure for Las Vegas on Thursday, Arum met with ALA Promotions president Michael Aldeguer following an earlier meeting with ABS-CBN’s top honcho Gabby Lopez, vice president for Sports Peter Musngi and reporter Dyan Castillejo at the EDSA Shangrila business center and reached a tentative agreement to work together.

In an interview with BoxingScene.com/Inquirer following the meeting, Arum said “We are really going to get behind the Aldeguers in putting the fight   programs in Cebu which ABS-CBN will broadcast. We  will utilize those events to build up fighters that we can. Then, on occasions, we will  have them exhibit their talents in both Mexico and the United States. We are hoping we can make some world champions out of Aldeguer’s stable of fighters.”

Arum said that his Hall-of-Fame matchmaker Bruce Trampler was “very, very high on the ability of AJ “Bazooka” Banal”. Arum said Trampler told him before he left Las Vegas to come to the Philippines primarily to see how pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao was doing in his preparation for his showdown with Antonio Margarito at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Texas on November 13  “to  see whether we can get Banal over to the States because we have some great fights for him.”

The Top Rank promoter said that boxing fans have an “opportunity to see him (Banal) perform on October 30” in the main event of a cracking fight card where he will face former IBF super flyweight and bantamweight champion Luis Alberto Perez of Nicaragua over ten rounds. Arum indicated that if Banal “gets through his test on Saturday” a bright future awaits him.

Banal who has been working with a new strength and conditioning coach Pio Solon in preparation for the acid test against Perez was buoyed by the news that Trampler thought highly of him and that Top Rank was ready to support the ALA fighters which gives him even greater motivation to put on an impressive performance on Saturday. 

Banal

Also featured on the card which is being staged by ALA Promotions in cooperation with ABS-CBN will be WBO Asia Pacific Youth lightweight champion Jason Pagara, exciting super bantamweight Larry “Bon Jovi” Canillas  and welterweight Mark Jason Melligen  who has been fighting under the aegis of Top Rank in Las Vegas over the past couple of years and according to Arum was “doing, very, very well.”

The astute promoter said there is a need  to take advantage of the tremendous worldwide popularity and recognition of Pacquiao. Arum said “when people mention  Filipino fighters they associate them with Manny Pacquiao so this is the time to take advantage of that association. Obviously very few if any of them are Manny Pacquiaos but still,  Filipino fighters because of Manny Pacquiao have great respect in the US, Mexico and around the world and that opens up a lot of opportunities for all these young men.”