For the record

For the record

By Joaquin Henson
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 27 Sep 2020

The WBO bantamweight title fight between defending champion JohnRiel Casimero of Ormoc City and Ghanaian Duke Micah in Connecticut this morning (Manila time) is only the third championship fight involving a Filipino this year. On February 1, IBF minimumweight champion Pedro Taduran de Albay retained his crown through a technical majority draw in the fourth round with Mexican Daniel Valladares in Guadalupe and three weeks later, Jeo Santísima de Masbate was arrested. by WBO super underweight ruler Emanuel Navarrete in the 11th round in Las Vegas.

Last year, the Filipinos featured in 22 world championship fights, winning 10 and losing 12 with Casimero earning wins in three, including two fights for the interim WBO bantamweight title, and Pacquiao and the ruler of super flyweight from IBF Jerwin Ancajas got two each. That’s a far cry from this year’s humble record due to the pandemic. Casimero’s duel with Micah is the third world title fight pitted by a Filipino against a Ghanaian in boxing history. The first was in 1963 when Flash Elorde retained the junior lightweight world title by disqualification over Love Allotey and the second was in 2010 when Manny Pacquiao defeated Joshua Clottey in a lopsided decision to keep his WBO welterweight crown at Arlington. , Texas.

The Filipino-Ghanaian rivalry in boxing dates back to the 1960s. Elorde and Allotey broke the ice in an untitled 10th in 1963 with Flash winning by close decision at the Araneta Coliseum. Three months later, they fought again, this time with Elorde’s belt at stake. Allotey returned to Manila in 1965 to bow to Rene Barrientos on points at the Rizal Memorial and in 1970, Jet Parker decided from Sampaloc in San Jose, California and a year later, scored a similar verdict on Tony Jumao-ace of Cebu in Stockton. In 1964, Allotey’s brother Bob faced the Filipino Virgilio (Billy) Brown twice in Melbourne, drawing once and winning once. The following year, he was in Manila to tie Al Diaz and lose to Baby Lorona in two Big Dome fights. In 1972, Bob defeated another Filipino Romy Guelas in a ten in Barcelona. In 1990, Nana Yaw Konadu stopped Australian Filipino Diego Duran in three rounds in Sydney.

In 1992, Ike Quartey of Ghana knocked out Dindo Canoy of Sagay, Negros Occidental, in an assault in a WBC International super lightweight fight in Accra. In 2010, Ben Tackie decided Dennis Laurente from Agusan del Norte in Grapevine, Texas, while Pacquiao thrashed Clottey in Texas as well. In 2015, Joseph Agbeko arrested Juanito Rubillar of Davao Oriental in El Paso, Texas and the following year, Larry Abarra of Zambales bombed Isaac Nettey in two in Dubai, while Isaac Dogboe defeated Neil John Tabanao of Davao del Norte in a 12-round decision in Accra. Southern Leyte’s Albert Pagara minced three Ghanaian opponents, Raymond Commey in Cebu, Laryea Odoi in Maasin and George Krampah in Cebu in 2016-18. Then in Singapore two years ago, Camarines Sur’s Michael Dasmarinas fought a split draw with Manyo Plange. There may have been more fights between Filipinos and Ghanaians, but my research shows 21 encounters with Filipinos winning nine, losing nine, and drawing three times.

Konadu, Quartey, Agbeko, Clottey and Dogboe were all former world champions. Without a doubt, Ghana’s greatest world champion was Azumah Nelson. Micah dreams of joining the elite cast of Ghana’s world champions in their fight against Casimero this morning, but it can turn into a nightmare.

Click here for a list of other articles written by Joaquin Henson.