The Philippines: Boxing's New Mexico

The Philippines: Boxing's New Mexico Tim Crowley 08/07/2007 - Los Angeles New Mexico is a state nestled between Texas and Arizona and on the border with Old Mexico. In boxing, there is a new Mexico emerging and it is the nation of the Philippines. Mexico has long been known as a fertile breeding ground for tough, exciting fighters that compete at the highest echelons of boxing, but a new recent crop of Filipino pugilists, surging in on the heels of Manny Pacquiao, have restacked the lower weight divisions to show a significant Filipino presence. The question arises – are Filipinos going to become as dominant in boxing as Mexicans have been? Pacquiao was the first fighter to establish the Filipinos on the modern superstar level. His destructions of Mexican legends Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales immediately put the Philippines on the map. Golden Boy Promotions is capitalizing on this with their upcoming World Cup of Boxing show on August 11. The lineup is pitting some of the best fighters from Mexico and the Philippines directly against one another, with two Mexican world champions defending against hungry Filipino challengers. The challengers Rey Bautista and Gerry Penalosa are two of the most highly regarded Filipino fighters behind Pacquiao, and their fights against Daniel Ponce de Leon and Jhonny Gonzalez are expected to be action-packed. There's plenty more happening. Rodel Mayol challenged Ulises Solis for the IBF junior flyweight title last Saturday, losing by spectacular KO, and Eriberto Gejon takes on Yutaka Niida for the WBA strawweight title on September 1st. So with all of the current activity from Filipino fighters, can it be said that they have now arrived as the new Mexico? If so, the Filipinos still have some work to do. One needs only look back to last weekend's sensational Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez rematch to appreciate that Mexico develops the finest offensive fighters in the world, who fit into the marketplace. Boxing is in the blood, and it's a national bloodline that runs from south of the border – where boys are taught to fight early and keen to take up a sport that ranks only behind football in terms of popularity – to the biggest of American stages. The old country was given a terrific boost by such names as Carlos Zarate – for a time considered the finest pound for pound in the world – not to mention Lupe Pintor and Ruben Olivares over their Hall of Fame careers. These men thrilled audiences with their action styles and crippling power at California's Inglewood Forum through the 1970s, a decade dominated by Hispanic fighters. The torch was passed on to Salvador Sanchez, who lit up the star studded early '80s before his untimely death, and Julio Cesar Chavez, the consummate Mexican warrior who fought as often as six times a year in the late '80s and early '90s. "JC" won his first 89 fights and twice vanquished Roger Mayweather, then known as the "Mexican Assassin" for his proclivity in defeating Mexican fighters, in classics. Over a 22-year career, Chavez was the consummate Mexican warrior. Highly skilled, he always sought to punish his opponents, whom he would grind down with trademark hooks to the body and a constant attacking style. Mexican fighters frequently display this kind of mentality, reflecting the passions of the fans who crave action and drama. To this day, the Mexicans are prolific, giving substance to many a major fight card on the West Coast and Las Vegas. They can win at the highest level in the smaller weight divisions, where the likes of Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera have been PPV attractions, thanks in no small part to the trilogy they fought for world titles at 122, 126 and 130-pounds. But the Filipinos are coming, thanks to Pacquiao who remarkably has managed to drop Barrera, Morales (winning two of three wars by KO), Oscar Larios (W12) and Juan Manuel Marquez (floored thrice in the opening round but fought back to hold Manny to a draw) in taking on the Mexican elite over the past four years. PacMania and more The Philippine Islands lay about 7,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean from the continental United States, and this distance has been a big obstacle in the journey of Filipino fighters towards the upper echelons of boxing. According to Philboxing.com editor Dong Secuya, Filipino fighters have always been able to compete at the highest levels of the sport, but the fact that they were so far away from America limited their opportunities to shine in the biggest fight venues.