Hero’s welcome at Elorde tribute

The late great Gabriel (Flash) Elorde would’ve been 80 today. He passed away 30 years ago but his memory remains fresh and inspiring to countless of Filipino fighters hoping to follow in his footsteps.

Elorde reigned as world junior lightweight boxing champion from 1960 to 1967 and his uninterrupted rule of seven years and three months in a single weight division is unmatched by any Filipino. The former Bogo bootblack wrested the crown from Harold Gomes on March 16, 1960, to inaugurate the Araneta Coliseum and lost it to Yoshiaki Numata in Tokyo on June 15, 1967.

WBO lightflyweight titlist Donnie Nietes has set a new record for the longest reign of seven years, six months and counting but it was extended from minimumweight to lightflyweight or over two weight classes. The three longest reigning world champions in one division are heavyweight Joe Louis from 1937 to 1949 or 13 years and three months, supermiddleweight Joe Calzaghe from 1997 to 2008 or 10 years and 11 months and middleweight Bernard Hopkins from 1995 to 2005 or 10 years and three months.

Elorde is one of only three Filipinos enshrined in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York. The others are Asia’s first world champion Pancho Villa and Elorde’s father-in-law and impresario Lope (Papa) Sarreal.

Tonight, the Elorde family is celebrating his birthday with the 15th staging of the Annual Awards and Banquet of Champions at the Manila Hotel. His widow Laura will welcome the guests and honorees with her children. Four bouts will get the program rolling with Elorde’s grandsons Juan Martin (Bai) and Juan Miguel (Mig) seeing action. Bai, 30, will defend his WBO Asia Pacific superfeatherweight title while Mig, 28, will shoot for the vacant WBO Asia Pacific superbantamweight crown. Bai’s record is 16-1-1, with 7 KOs, while Mig’s slate is 17-1, with 9 KOs.

The event will mark the induction of Nietes and Nonito Donaire Jr. into the Elorde Boxing Hall of Fame. The first Hall of Famer to be enshrined was Manny Pacquiao. Nietes and Donaire will also share Boxer of the Year honors with IBO lightflyweight king Rey Loreto and interim WBA lightflyweight titlist Randy Petalcorin.

While Nietes and Donaire clearly deserve their moment of recognition, Loreto is expected to steal the show tonight. Last Sunday, he knocked out hometown idol Nkosinathi Joyi at 1:46 of the first round to retain his IBO 108-pound belt at the Mdantsane Gym in East London, South Africa. Loreto returned home yesterday and will no doubt arrive to a hero’s welcome at the Manila Hotel.

Loreto, 24, underwent an emergency appendectomy two months ago and wasn’t fully recovered to train for his first title defense. But he pushed himself to face Joyi in the bout that had been postponed twice on Dec. 13 and Feb. 28. South African promoter Siphatho Handi dangled a juicy $45,000 purse to entice Loreto to keep the appointment last Sunday.

Loreto said he wouldn’t last six rounds with Joyi because of his condition. The wound in the appendix area had not healed and Loreto feared he wouldn’t be able to withstand a body attack from Joyi. But he needed the money to finish building a modest home in barangay Tamayong in Davao City for his one-year-old son and Japanese girlfriend. Loreto figured his only hope was to score a quick knockout.

In February last year, Loreto claimed the vacant IBO lightflyweight title via a third round knockout over Joyi in Monaco. The win came after he scored an upset majority technical decision over Thai veteran and former WBA minimumweight champion Pornsawan Porpramook in Bangkok. After taking the IBO crown, Loreto kept busy with a seventh round demolition of Indonesia’s Heri Amol last October.

The road to fame was far from smooth for Loreto. He turned pro in 2008 and lost his first four outings. Loreto also dropped four in a row, three in Thailand, during a tailspin in 2011. One of the losses was a second round knockout to Paipharob Kokietgym in a PABA minimumweight title match in Thailand. In all, Loreto has lost 13 bouts and won 20, including 12 by KO. Three of the setbacks were by split decision.

The odds were stacked against Loreto in the Joyi rematch. Only one Filipino had won a world title fight in 31 attempts in South Africa dating back to Pretty Boy Lucas’ defeat to Jake Matlala in a WBO flyweight bout in 1994. That was Edrin Dapudong who blitzed Gideon Buthelezi in one round for the IBO superflyweight crown in 2013. After Dapudong’s win, six Filipinos failed in world title fights in South Africa. So the chances of Loreto winning were incredibly slim. And the odds got even slimmer because of his condition. To make matters worst, the referee was a South African, Tony Nyangiwe, and two judges, Allan Matakane and Lulama Mtya, were also South Africans. The third judge was Eddie Pappoe of Ghana. Mtya was a late replacement for neutral judge Arthur Ellenhson of Germany. Ellenhson reportedly missed his flight to South Africa.

Despite the daunting circumstances, Loreto was determined to win. He came out smoking from his corner and delivered a right hook-left uppercut combination to floor the flustered Joyi early. Joyi beat the count but went down again, this time from a left hook. Nyangiwe had no choice but to stop the massacre. A ringside reporter said Joyi’s march from the ring back to his dressing room was like a funeral procession.

How appropriate and timely that Loreto will be honored tonight. His story is one for the books and surely, another source of inspiration for all Filipinos.