By Ronnie Nathanielsz
IBF Asia Pacific lightweight champion Ranee “KO Kid” Ganoy, the Sydney-based Filipino is ready to face the much-hyped Thai fighter Saddam Kietyongyuth who has repeated called out former OPBF champion and world title challenger Randy Suico.
Daniel Coyne of Team Ganoy informed BoxingScene.com, insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports that the Saddam people have been in contact with Ganoy’s manager Hermie “Dido” Bohol and the response was “of course Ranee would love to fight Saddam” even as Coyne expressed surprise how Saddam “suddenly appeared in the IBF ratings at No. 13.”
He said a win over Saddam would ensure that Ganoy “gets back in the top 15 where he belongs.”
Team Ganoy said Saddam had “done nothing to deserve his ranking” pointing out that he “does not hold an IBF belt and has never contested an IBF sanctioned bout” posing the question as to how he got rated No. 13 when he “wasn’t previously rated anywhere by any of the organizations.”
Coyne noted that Saddam’s promoter has been making “plenty of noise talking up is boy. I keep hearing they want to prove he is the best lightweight in Asia when he isn’t even the best lightweight in his gym.”
Coyne conceded that Saddam can obviously punch but said he hadn’t fought someone as strong as Ganoy who has a record of 21 knockouts in 25 wins with 11 losses and 2 draws including an 8th round KO of former world title challenger Robbie Peden to win the IBF Pan Pacific lightweight crown on March 9, 2007. He said “let’s see who his harder.”
Ganoy’s handlers said that as long as the purse is reasonable and they have at least six weeks notice they welcome the fight adding “the ball is now in their court ."
We learned that a tentative April 2 date has been set for the fight to be held in Thailand although there have been reports that a legal battle looms over the managerial rights to Saddam.
