Save for a rainy day

CEBU, Philippines —  In a dazzling display of brute force and strength, Cebuano boxer Randy Suico knocked out Australian Karim Nashar in less than one round during their non-title duel headlining the Blow by Blow show by Viva Vintage TV on August 31, 2001 at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

It was one of Suico’s most powerful performances in his budding pro career back then.

But moments after he sent Nashar into the dreamland, the large crowd suddenly became rowdy.

At first, the fight promoters thought that the spectators might have yearned for more action in the ring because the scheduled 10-round match ended too soon.

It turned out the fans wanted something else other than boxing.

They were actually dismayed that sexy star Rica Peralejo, one of Viva’s talents who was the roundgirl at that time, won’t be able to parade her beauty on top of the ring because the bout did not last one round.

That prompted the organizers to let Peralejo sashay around the ring not only once but three times to the elation of those who watched the card.

The biggest smile that night though belonged to Suico, who lived up to his ring name as “Kumong Bato (Hands of Stone)”. Unloading the power of his sledgehammer fists to the max, he mercilessly destroyed Nashar in a matter of seconds.

Now 40 years old, the Mandaue City-native Suico has without doubt established a name as one of the best ring gladiators Cebu has ever produced.

He’s actually a late bloomer having laced his first pair of gloves at age 14 at the modest Noy Pacing Flores Gym in Barangay Alang-Alang, Mandaue.

Fighting under the fabled ALA Gym, the lanky but sturdy Suico became a multiple champion as an amateur, even winning the Best Boxer award during the 1997 Philippine National Games (PNG) hosted by Cebu City. Among his contemporaries were Malcom “Eagle Eye” Tuñacao, Revero “The Gentle Giant” Santillan, Rodel “Batang Mandaue” Mayol, Eriberto “Yukka” Gejon, and Dindo “Die sel” Castañares.

When Suico turned pro together with Tuñacao and Santillan in 1998, they were baptized as the “Golden Boys of Cebu Boxing”.

And they all lived up to their lofty billing.

Tuñacao went on to claim a world title (WBC flyweight), while Santillan reigned as OPBF welterweight king many times.

Suico wasn’t far behind in terms of accomplishments. Under the stewardship of Japanese manager Joe Koizumi, he became a two-division OPBF titleholder (super featherweight and lightweight).

He vied for the WBA lightweight crown but failed after being stopped in the ninth round by the undefeated Juan Diaz of Houston, Texas on July 15, 2006 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Though on the losing end, the hard-hitting Suico gained respect from Diaz himself.  “He was pretty tough. He came to take my title. He showed a lot of stamina. He came out punching a lot from the opening bell,” Diaz said of Suico.

After he retired in 2017 with a record of 31 wins, 26 coming by way of knockout, against 10 losses and a draw, Suico earned a living as a fitness trainer.

But just like anyone else, Suico lost his job due to the global health crisis. That left him with a valuable lesson in life to ponder on and share to others.

“The most important lesson I learned during this pandemic is that we should save money so that no matter what happens in the future, we have something to get from our pocket especially during this unexpected crisis wherein many are affected and don’t have jobs,” said Suico. “My advice to everyone is that we must follow the protocols because it’s very hard if we get infected by Covid. We should stay home, and don’t go out if it’s not  important. Keep safe and pray to God that everything will be alright soon.”