DECEMBER 6, 1997
KORONADAL, SOUTH COTABATO, MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES--Hard-punching Filipino
LUISITO ESPINOSA, 125 1/2, successfully kept his WBC featherweight
throne for the 5th time, as he impressively dropped previously unbeaten
WBC #1 contender CARLOS RIOS, 125 1/2, Argentina, 3 times and scored a
fine TKO victory at 1:29 of the 6th round. Some 30,000 spectators were
in attendance at South Cotabato Stadium.
It was truly an action-packed affair. Espinosa, taller by 2 inches, cautiously started by keeping the distance, while, Rios, unbeaten in 41 bouts, tried to come close to the defending champ. When they exchanged hot rallies, Espinosa landed a solid left hook and opened a gash at the right optic of the Argentine challenger. Referee Jay Nady, Las Vegas, had the cut examined by the ring physician. In the closing seconds of the opening session, Espinosa exploded a countering left hook that floored Rios for the mandatory 8 count. The bell came to his rescue.
The 30-year-old Espinosa, formerly WBA bantam ruler at the age of 22 before his re-coronation, tried to apply the same strategy of keeping his distance. When he was temporarily forced to the ropes, Rios, 26, came boring in with his head first. An accidental butt of Rios's head and Espinosa's mouth happned with the champ falling down. The referee declared Espinosa's fall due to a head-clash, not a knockdown, and gave the champ a minute rest in the corner. It wasn't enough for the Filipino to recuperate. Espinosa, still dazed, resumed fighting, but Rios battered him to the punch with a barrage of heavy blows. Espinosa was barely saved by the bell.
Espinosa, in the 3rd, kept his distance against the willing mixer, who inexplicably didn't go forward to attack the champ who had been obviously hurt in the previous round. The champ connected with a beautiful countering right to the onrushing Argentine, dropping him on the deck with a thud. Despite his absorption of such a devastating shot, Rios promptly jumped up to beat the count. Rios had a narrow escape at the bell.
The 4th was a mild round in this hot contest. Espinosa sometimes threw his favorite left hooks and straight rights, while Rios attempted to land big right crosses. But Espinosa seemed to dominate the round.
Espinosa, who won the WBC feather title on a unanimous decision over Mexican Manuel Medina in Japan in Dec., 1995, solved Rios's fight plan, and kept circling and occasionally countered him with faster punches in the 5th. Espinosa landed a solid left hook followed by a right uppercut, flooring the small version of Ray "Boon Boon" Mancini on the canvas. Rios was apparently hurt, but was saved by the bell again.
The 6th and fatal round saw Espinosa go for a kill. The champ pinned Rios to the ropes and connected with a very strong right to the face. Espinosa had Rios rubbery-legged and reeling to the ropes. Espinosa stalked him from pillar to post. When he brought him to a standstill in the corner, the referee Nady made a well-timed stoppage.
Espinosa, the Philippine national hero, was raised by many jubilant supporters who rushed into the ring. Just before he scored this spectacular TKO win, he suffered a butt and was streaming red ribbon from a cut on the forehead.
This victory raised Espinosa's credentials to 42-7, 22 KOs. Rios tasted his first defeat and dropped to 39-1-1-1ND (No Decision).
After the 5th round, the official tallies were as follows--Nicolas Hidalgo (Venezuela) and Ken Morita (Japan) both 49-43, and Daniel Talon (France) 48-44, all for Espinosa.
Espinosa's manager Joe Koizumi said after the triumph that he would take Espinosa to the US to get him more exposure. Many fight fans are looking forward to seeing an highly anticipated encounter between Prince Naseem Hamed and Espinosa, which may materialize next year.
Upcoming Filipino prospect MANNY PACQUIAO, a lefty KO artist at 111, kept his OPBF (Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation) flyweight title by dispatching Thailander TANOMDEJ SINGWANGCHA at 1:38 of the opening canto. The champ's persistent body bombardment was a haymaker. Pacquiao, 18, bettered his mark to 22-1, 14 KOs. The loser reportedly fell to 12-2-1, 5 KOs, although he didn't seem to have compiled such a good record in Thailand.
WBA #2 rated junior flyweight contender JOMA GAMBOA, 109, was surprisingly held to a controversial majority draw by DENNIS SABSAL, 110, over 10. It was a ridiculous verdict, even though Sabsal, the Philippine #1 mini-fly contender, came from Davao, and all the officials also came from Davao. Gamboa obviously controlled the fight by giving him a lesson all the way. Scored: 99-99, 98-98 and 98-97 for Sabsal (ridiculous!). The judges seemed to neglect all rounds Gamboa dominated by scoring 10-10. Gamboa had iced ex-WBA junior fly champ Carlos Murillo with a one-punch KO in the first session in Caracas, Venezuela, on Sept. 27, and moved up to #2 of the WBA 108-pound ratings. But Koronadal, which is close to Davao (capital of Mindanao), might be a wrong place for such an excellent counterpuncher as Gamboa to fight, as he was robbed of his obvious victory. Gamboa is 22-3-1, 17 KOs. Sabsal is reportedly 15-3-1, 6 KOs.
Promoter: Joe Koizumi in association with Nazario-Mondejar Promotions.
WBC supervisor: Bobby Lee (Hawaii).
(12-06-97)
PS An unexpected accident took place in showing the title bout both in the Philippines and Argentina. Since it was impossible to show it live even to all the Philippines from Koronadal, a very southern place near Malaysia and Indonesia, the local promoter planned to transport a broadcasting tape to Davao airport as soon as the main event was over, and carry it to Cebu, where it was to be shown in the country on a 3-hour delayed basis. The Vintage TV also planned to send a TV signal to Argentina at 11:00 pm, which was equivalent to 10:00 am in Buenos Aires on the same day. The Espinosa vs. Rios bout started at about 5:50 pm and ended at about 6:20 pm. Though a car desperated rushed to Davao, it didn't arrive there in time. Miserable enough, in the Philippines, Vintage showed just previous bouts of Espinosa and Rios, respectively. In Argentina, they were waiting for the TV signal to come, but in vain. It was shown in the Philippines from 4:00 pm on the next day, and it will be telecast later in Argentina.
NICOLAS HIDALGO (VENEZUELA)
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | TOTAL |
| ESPINOSA | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 49 |
| RIOS | 8 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 43 |
KEN MORITA (JAPAN)
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | TOTAL |
| ESPINOSA | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 49 |
| RIOS | 8 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 43 |
DANIEL TALON (FRANCE)
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | TOTAL |
| ESPINOSA | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 49 |
| RIOS | 8 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 44 |