"Five rounds, Gerry finished," Vorapin said in yesterday’s PSA Forum at the Holiday Inn Hotel where he was joined by his manager Leon Panoncillo, GAB chairman Dominador Cepeda and Sonny Barrios, who represented Peñalosa’s handler Atty. Rudy Salud.
"His chances are great because he has all the qualities and talent of a good fighter," said Panoncillo, a Filipino who is based in Hawaii and connected with the Don King Promotions. "Of course, Gerry has a lot of talent but Ratanachai has the strength."
Ratanachai’s main weapon – his left straight – is so devastating it almost claimed the life Mexico’s Fernando Ibarra during their bout last year. Ibarra was knocked out in the sixth round, slipped into a coma and until now is trying to recover, his body half-paralyzed.
"That makes him so unique," Panoncillo of Ratanachai, guaranteed $5,000 for the fight against Peñalosa’s P1.2 million. "So, it’s going to be a good fight. It’s going to be a slam-bang affair and may the best man win."
Cepeda echoed Panoncillo’s sentiment but refused to make any predictions. Barrios, for his part, said: "Well, if the Thai fighter says it’ll be over in five rounds, then the crowd must come early. But against Gerry, eh baka si Vorapin ang maunang mamahinga."
Tickets for the bout presented by San Miguel Beer are pegged at P1,000 for ringside, P600 for lower box and P100 for gallery. They are available at all Casino Filipino branches, including those at the Heritage Hotel, Manila Pavilion and Grand Boulevard.
Peñalosa, who snatched the division title reserved for fighters ranked outside the top 10 from Thailand’s Pone Saengmorakot last May, begged off from attending yesterday’s forum to concentrate on his last few days of training.
Ratanachai, 29, a southpaw like the Filipino champ, boasts of a ring record of 38 wins (27 KOs) and four losses. He is unbeaten in a dozen fights against Filipinos with only three of them managing to last the distance against the Thai slugger.
Peñalosa, 28, defeated Saengmorakot also at Casino Filipino to improve his record of 41 wins (26 KOs), three losses and two draws. He started training for Saturday’s fight last August under the watchful eyes of his brother Dodie Boy, the former world champion.
A victory by Peñalosa will boost his bid to regain the WBC superflyweight crown being held by Japan’s Masanori Tokuyama. Peñalosa lost the world title to Korea’s Cho Injoo last year and failed to regain it during a rematch last January in Seoul.