Top Rank Has High Hopes For Mark Melligen's Career
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum has high hopes for Filipino light welterweight Mark Jason Melligen who faces the toughest fight of his career when he clashes with 26 year old, 5’11” Mexican Michael “El Bravo” Rosales at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on August 15 on the “Pinoy Power 2” fight card at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on August 15.
The fight card will include the WBA super flyweight interim title fight between Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire and Rafael “El Torito” Concepcion and WBO featherweight champion Steven Luevano facing Filipino mandatory challenger Bernabe Concepcion.
Arum told BoxingScene.com, insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports that Melligen “if he stays with it will really surprise people with his ability.”
The Top Rank promoter recalled that Melligen who was one of the sparring partners of newly crowned WBA super lightweight champion Marcos Maidana of Argentina who stopped Golden Boy Promotions protégé Victor Ortiz in six rounds last week, “was beating Maidana in the ring every day, every day. Melligen was beating him in sparring whatever that means.”
He said because of the sparring sessions with Melligen, Maidana “prepared really well for the fight” against the previously undefeated and highly touted Ortiz.
ALA Gym patron Tony Aldeguer conceded that “its gonna be tough because Rosales is elongated” standing four inches taller than the 5’7” Melligen who has a record of 15-1 with 11 knockouts compared to Rosales who boasts of a record of 24-3 with 21 knockouts.
Rosales lost by a 7th round TKO to Mike Alvarado (20-0, 13 KO’s) on May 9, 2008 in what was described as Alvarado’s toughest fight so far in which both fighters landed bombs throughout in a fight which referee Rocky Burke was criticized for a premature stoppage at 1:28 of the 7th round.
In a North American Boxing Federation welterweight title fight on April 11 this year, Rosales who was dropped in round one eventually lost by a 10th round TKO to undefeated Saul Alvarez (25-0-1, 18 KO’s) and in his last fight on June 20 this year Rosales won the FECOMBOX light middleweight title with a majority decision over previously undefeated Luis Fernandez Uribe (21-0, 18 KO’s) to prove himself as a worthy if not dangerous challenger to the 23 year old Melligen.
