MANDALUYONG CITY – Dave Penalosa and his tormentor Marcos Cardenas were both overweight in their initial weigh in here for the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) Oriental Featherweight championship. The southpaw Penalosa (14-0-0, 10 KOs) tipped the scale at 128 pounds while Cardenas (who took his under garments) was at 127 lbs., both above the 126 limit. WBO Vice President for Asia Pacific Leon Panoncillo told Newsph.org that the boxers were given two hours to shed their extra weights.
Cardenas (19-6-1, 15 KOs) made the limit after shadow boxing for about 30 minutes but not Penalosa who almost consumed the two hours that Panoncillo gave him. After the weigh-in supervised by Panoncillo himself, Penalosa made it at 126 limit after the 5th having it at 127.5 in the second, 127 in the third, 126.5 in the fourth and finally at exactly 126 lbs in the fifth.
The ordeal of his son did not escaped the attention of Dodie Boy Penalosa however, the father of Dave and one of his cornermen and coach tomorrow night in the Skydome of SM North EDSA in Quezon City. The elder Penalosa almost punched Ed Coronel of the Games and Amusement Board (GAB) alleging that Coronel had been making it hard for them. The former two-division world champion told GAB Chairman Abraham Khalil “Baham” Mitra who arrived just in time that Coronel uttered statements which Dodie Boy did not like.
Mitra handled the heated situation by signalling Coronel not to answer back while Dodie Boy then was already relieved because his son already made the weight.
“Ngayon lang kami lumaban ng championship tapos ganunin nyo kami, (This is just the first time that we fight a championship and you will treat us like this), Dodie Boy uttered to the hearing distance of sports scribes, Mitra and Panoncillo, among others. Asked what happened, the young Penalosa in the ensuing pre-fight press con said, he was over confident because he already made the weight a day before the official weigh-in.”We became too confident after I made it in our own weighing,” Dave said in Filipino.
For his part, Cardenas said that he is not threatened by Penalosa whom he describe as a “known boxer.” Cardenas already suffered defeat in the hands of a Filipino boxer, Genesis Servania in 2011, but he told
boxing judge and Philboxing.com writer Carlos Costa, a Panamian who served as the instant interpreter to Cardenas, that he was still young and not a mature boxer at that time. Incidentally, Cardenas just turned 29 last February 14 while Dave also turned 27 last February 11. Panoncillo said the winner of the bout for the WBO Oriental feartherweight championship will be included in the top 15 featherweights in the world rankings of WBO.
The Penalosa-Cardenas fight is promoted by GerryPens Promotions, Inc. of Gerry Penalosa, himself
a two-time world boxing champion like his elder brother Dodie Boy during his prime.
Former two-time world champion John Riel Casimero who now fights for Penalosa Boxing Stable is pitted against Kenya Yamashito of Japan as the main undercard. Dave’s cousin Carlo Penalosa will fight against Watana Phenbaan of Thailand while Ifugao boxing sensation Carl James Martin is facing another Thailander Petchchorhae Kokietgym.
The referee of the Penalosa-Cardenas bout will be international boxing referee Atty. Danrex Tapdasan while the judges will be Martino Redona of Hawaii, USA, Aquil Tamano and Danilo Lopez who are both
from Manila. The bouts will be aired live via ESPN TV5.
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