AJ Banal - the much-touted successor of Pacquiao ended up in a nightmare

They all loved to say of Alex John Banal that the celebrated young boxer would be the immediate heir to the country’s boxing superhero Manny Pacquiao.

That was before the numbing nightmare inside the New Cebu Coliseum last Saturday.

Now, all those who sank with AJ in the 10th round of his fight for an interim world title against an unheralded Panamanian would not even hasten a guess if Banal could still qualify as bag boy or errand boy of the great Pacman.

There was paralyzing disbelief after Banal, who took control of the fight early and was threatening to dominate, tottered and sank senseless by the ring post in the 10th round.

His handlers, led by the Villamor brothers Edmond and Edito, were hollering and desperately ordering AJ to spring back, rise, get up as referee Raul Caiz Jr. tolled the KO count.

* * *

No way. Grand and luminous like a brand-new luxury international vessel as AJ had loomed before the maiden championship voyage, the poor fighter was pitifully reduced into a damp paper boat.

The failed trip to ultimate stardom was so tragic Banal collapsed a second time on his way to the dugout.

It’s easy to say that, more than from sheer exhaustion, AJ sank again upon realizing the great number of believers who came running to the coliseum and ended up damned victims of the boxing disaster.

* * *

Banal, for sure, must’ve felt like that dumb ship captain who foolishly drove the Titanic against a killer iceberg out there in the ocean—and next woke up to realize it was too late.

Indeed, the Banal fight for the WBA interim super flyweight title opened like a daydream. He had a perfect start, was landing crisp combinations as he followed orders from his corner.

Banal was counterpunching perfectly against the charging Rafael Concepcion who was labeled El Torito or Baby Bull.

* * *

For some moments in the first half of the bout, Banal indeed appeared like he just would’ve to go through the formalities of a coronation.

He looked overqualified to finish off an outmatched foe.

Actually, the bout had started to shape up like a punching picnic for the celebrated Banal—until Concepcion gallantly waded through the hail of punches and dug a couple of big blows to the body.

This came in the third round.

No, the Panamanian did not hit the jackpot, but that all-revealing incident in the third opened great possibilities of a hard-won stoppage.

* * *

It would indeed not be easy because, as Concepcion explained after the victory, he had to surpass himself to survive the punishment from his sharp-punching foe.

Naturally, there were various expert reviews, including one which claimed Banal had overtrained.

Maybe but, more than possible burnout, it was dumb, inferior training which led to the Saturday nightmare inside the steamy Cebu Coliseum.

In the first place, it was not an infant bull, but a fully mature warrior Banal faced.

Worse, this seasoned bull decided to gore Banal where he could not take it—around the belly.

* * *

Banal was trained to be the better boxer, and he looked it for most of the bout.

Concepcion had to practically walk through a wall in order to win.

He may not be the better boxer but he was the stronger, more solid warrior.

In the final analysis, it can also be said that Concepcion stole victory because he had the better corner.

His chief handler, Hector Roca, readily shifted tactics after his fighter fell an easy prey to Banal’s sharp counterpunching.

Roca ordered Concepcion to go down and shift the attack to the body.

The reason is simple: you cannot effectively counter blows to the body without exposing part of your belly.

Meanwhile, Banal’s cornermen could only stare in awe as Concepcion gallantly dug deeper in the succeeding rounds.

* * *

What would ultimately be exposed was this secret nightmare inside Banal’s (Bazooka) bubble gum belly.

He had succeeded in concealing this until the third round against Concepcion.

The hideous result was history in reverse: Lapu-Lapu being shocked and stopped by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan.

The full-house crowd, including Games and Amusements Board staffers who took over the working space reserved for media people, visibly felt they had entered the wrong theater.

They came to witness an epic featuring a native warrior but ended up shocked, paralyzed.

They all sank with the unprepared Filipino boxing dreamboat. (Source: Bare Eye by Recah Trinidad)

Zerna humbles Reyes; Alcano also tumbles

UNHERALDED Ricky Zerna stunned pool maestro Efren “Bata” Reyes, 9-4, in the second round of the First Senate President Manny Villar Cup Bulacan Leg Saturday at the Event Center of SM City here.

Zerna, a member of the Negros Billiards Stable of businessman Jonathan Sy, displayed superb pocketing and great control of the cue to beat the man regarded as the best cue artist ever and inch closer to the coveted Villar Cup and the P300,000 top purse.

“I’m very very happy,” said the 26-year-old pride of Dumaguete City in Filipino It’s truly a distinct honor to beat the world’s best player.

“I hope to sustain my rise and play even better to realize my dream of becoming a champion,” added Zerna, conqueror of Richard Pornelosa, 9-7, in the opening round of the series presented by Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine Sports and supported by Camella Communities.

Zerna will next face former world No.1 Francisco “Django” Bustamante, who notched his second straight win by beating reigning national champion Lee Van Corteza, 9-6.

After splitting the first four racks, Zerna took advantage of a couple of miscues Reyes committed to pocket six of the next seven racks for an 8-3 lead.

Reyes stole Zerna’s break of the 12th rack to score his fourth point, but his rally proved to be short-lived as the 54-year-old Magician broke dry in the next frame and Zerna sank and tough-angled two-nine combination to seal the biggest upset in the event organized by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP).

“It’s really difficult to win nowadays because there are so many good players,” said Reyes in Filipino. “Bai (Zerna) and Jomar are good. They will go places.”

Former two-time world champion Ronnie Alcano is also out of the running after yielding to hometown bet Egie “Marilao” Geronimo, 9-7, in their opening round encounter Friday.

Geronimo, the 30-year-old mainstay of the star-studded Bugsy Promotions of businessman Perry Mariano also stunned Reyes, 9-1, in their match in the Villar Cup Cebu leg last June.

Geronimo was playing 2007 World Pool runner-up Roberto Gomez at presstime of the event supported by Puyat Sports, Bugsy Promotions, Negros Billiards Stable and ER Cues.

Rival Ateneo, La Salle crush respective foes

WHATEVER PLANS OF AN upset the Maroons of University of the Philippines had yesterday were crushed with impunity early by a flock of soaring Ateneo Blue Eagles.

Ateneo stamped its dominance right in the opening quarter, ripping the game wide open there on the way to dealing the Season 71 hosts an 83-66 beating in the 71st UAAP men’s basketball competition at the PhilSports Arena.

Just like in the their previous wins, the Eagles turned to their strong inside game to build an early advantage. This time, though, it was much-hyped rookie Ryan Buenafe who took charge by pumping in 17 points to power the Eagles to their fourth straight triumph in as many matches.

“We’re quite happy that we took care of business today,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black. “We came in with a business-like attitude. We really didn’t want to stumble today, so we came in and played good defense.”

In the second game, La Salle overcame an early scare for a 93-69 triumph over winless National University to claim solo second at 3-1.

Peejay Barua came to the Archers’ rescue by knocking down 17 points in the first half—15 coming from beyond the arc—to turn an unexpected 12-21 deficit into a 46-36 advantage at the break.

“We had a flat start especially coming from a hard game against UST; aside from that, there’s the mid-term exams this particular week, so probably that’s why we were just sleepwalking in the first quarter,” said coach Franz Pumaren after the defending champions streaked to their third straight win.

“It’s a good thing Barua gave us a shooting clinic,” Pumaren added.

Barua, a veteran 6-foot-2 swingman, finished with a career-high 26 points built around a scorching 75 percent shooting clip from the field.

Biggest margin
Rico Maierhofer also came out big with 16 points on top of 13 rebounds, two steals and two blocks in just 16 minutes of action.

An 8-0 start in the third quarter gave the Archers a 54-36 margin that stretched to as many as 30 points, 87-57, late in the fourth period.

Rabeh Al-Hussaini contributed 13 markers and seven boards for the Eagles, while Eric Salamat added 12 points.

“Going into this game, there were a couple of things we wanted to do,” said Black. “We wanted to play them even on the boards, we know that’s really their strength.

“They’re a very good offensive rebounding team,” he explained. “We also wanted to control their perimeter shooting. That was really our focus. Offensively, we wanted to run as much as we could, get as many fastbreak points as we could.”

The 6-foot-2 Buenafe, a cousin of Coca-Cola rookie Ronjay Buenafe, unloaded 11 points in the third quarter to put the Eagles ahead by 18 points, 70-52.

“His performance has been speaking for itself,” said Black of last season’s NCAA junior MVP. “He’s a rookie but he doesn’t really play like a rookie. He plays with a lot of maturity. He’s a high-percentage player.”

Sizzling percentage
Hitting a sizzling 57.7 percent from the field in the first half, the Eagles took an early big lead at 43-29.

Buenafe, Al-Hussaini, and Jai Reyes combined for 13 markers in the opening minutes, 13-11, before Chris Tiu fired eight straight markers to give the Eagles their first double-digit advantage, 21-11, with two minutes left in the first period.

Salamat, who also contributed three assists and two steals, capped the decisive 10-0 run Tiu started to extend the Eagles’ edge to 23-11.

By the second half, the margin grew to 20 points at 74-54 as the Ateneo reserves took over the scoring chores.

The Maroons absorbed their third straight blowout loss after a surprise opening-day triumph over the Bulldogs, who remained winless in four outings after failing to sustain a strong start against the Archers.

Meanwhile, action resumes today with Far Eastern University and University of the East eyeing a share of second place when they face separate foes at the PhilSports Arena.

The Tams have the dangerous assignment as they take on the Santo Tomas Tigers at 4 p.m., while the Warriors battle the Adamson Falcons at 2 p.m.

The scores:

First Game
ATENEO 83—Buenafe 17, Al-Hussaini 13, Salamat 12, Tiu 11, Salva 6, Baclao 6, Austria 4, Nkemakolam 4, Long 4, Reyes 4, Baldos 2, Gonzaga 0, Chua 0, Burke 0, Sumalinog 0.
UP 66—Reyes 12, Braganza 12, Lopez 8, Co 8, Sison 7, Agbayani 7, Sorongon 6, Astorga 4, Marfori 2, Fortu 0, Gamboa 0, Hipolito 0.
Quarters: 25-15, 43-33, 70-52, 83-66

Second Game
LA SALLE 93—Barua 26, Maierhofer 16, Villanueva 8, Mendoza 8, Mangahas 8, Batricevic 5, Webb 4, Casio 4, Walsham 3, Chandumal 3, Bagatsing 3, Lee 3, Ferdinand 2, Revilla 0, Malabes 0, Atkins 0.
NU 69—Asoro 14, Jahnke 13, Berry 8, Baloran 8, Aguilar 6, Catamora 6, Batac 5, Garcia 4, Galapon 3, Ponferrada 2, Tungkul 0, Magat 0, Fabula 0, Dela Cruz 0, Luy 0.
Quarters: 22-24, 46-36, 70-48, 93-69

RP's Paeng Nepomuceno posts 3rd Guinness record in bowling

Six-time world bowling champion Paeng Nepomuceno was honored for the third time by the Guinness Book of World Records, this time for having won the most number of career championships worldwide.


Nepomuceno racked up his 118th career title last September in Melbourne, winning the South Pacific Classic, Australia’s most prestigious individual tournament. Nepomuceno prevailed over Jason Belmonte, last year’s World Tenpin Masters Champion.

That victory gave Nepomuceno the distinction of having three existing Guinness Records.

For winning in Melbourne, Nepomuceno was honored last January 3 at the Malacañang Palace by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who conferred on him the Order of Lakandula with the Special Class of Champion for Life.

The Hall of Famer’s first Guinness Record was for winning four World Cups in three different decades (70’s, 80’s and 90’s). His second Guinness distinction was in recognition of his feat as the youngest to win a world title at age 19.

“This is a great honor and I’d like to share it with all my countrymen," said Nepomuceno. “Whenever I compete, my countrymen always give me great support, which gives me great inspiration to always do my best."

Nepomuceno was congratulated again by the Guinness World Records Management Team and welcomed to the select club of World Record-holders in an accompanying letter.

In November 1999, Nepomuceno was awarded the International Olympic Committee President’s Trophy, the highest award for sports made especially significant because bowling is still not recognized as an Olympic sport.

In the same year, Nepomuceno was named by the World Bowling Federation’s Athlete of the Millennium.

In 2003, Nepomuceno was recognized by the Bowler’s Journal International as “the Greatest International Bowler of All Time" and became the first athlete to be enshrined in the International Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum in St. Louis, Missouri, where his seven-foot image is displayed at the museum’s entrance.

Nepomuceno, who still actively competes up to this day, is the only bowler in the world who has won titles in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. (GMANews.TV)

Tiger Woods to become the first billionaire athlete

Tiger Woods is on course to become the first billionaire athlete with the popular U.S. golfer proving a marketing dream, according to Forbes Magazine.

Woods, who won the U.S. Open last month despite a bad knee, is on track to exceed $1 billion in career earnings by 2010 after earning $115 million in 2007, said the American magazine which publishes an annual list of the world's richest people.

Forbes in Wednesday's edition said it would take 32-year-old Woods a bit longer to actually pocket that amount as taxes and management fees eat into his prize and endorsement money.

The calculation was based on Woods' estimated earnings in the annual rich list dating back to 1996, when he turned pro, and also credited the world number one golfer with annualized investment returns of 8 percent.

"Based on those criteria, we project Tiger Woods should join our list of the world's billionaires in 2011," said the magazine. "It will be an unprecedented occurrence."

The magazine said there are plenty of billionaires who have excelled at sports, like Switzerland's richest man and champion sailor Ernesto Bertarelli, but no billionaires who have accumulated their fortune by playing sports.

Woods has been a sports marketing phenomenon.

A golf prodigy as a child, his recent U.S. Open victory was his 14th major championship and he has won 50 tournaments on the PGA Tour faster than any player.

But prize money only accounts for about a tenth of his earnings with the rest coming from lucrative endorsement deals signed by the exceptionally popular player with companies that include Nike, Buick and Gillette.

Sports drink maker Gatorade recently launched a new line of drinks called Gatorade Tiger.

The magazine said Woods would earn about $90 million in endorsement contracts this year. Over the course of his career, he has earned more than $750 million from such deals.

Woods is not playing again this season after undergoing knee surgery a few weeks ago.

Lionheart Nadal dethrones Federer in Wimbledon epic

LONDON -- Rafael Nadal dethroned five-time champion Roger Federer as king of Wimbledon on Sunday with an epic 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-7 (8/10), 9-7 win in one of the greatest Grand Slam finals of all time.

The Spaniard, who had squandered two match points in a nerve-shredding fourth set tie-breaker, added a first All England Club title to his four French Opens, shattering Federer's dreams of an historic sixth successive Wimbledon trophy.

Victory made the 22-year-old Nadal only the third man to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season, and the first since Bjorn Borg in 1980, while giving Spain its first men's champion here since Manolo Santana in 1966.

The win also ended Federer's six-year, 65-match winning streak on grass.

At four hours and 48 minutes, it was the longest final in Wimbledon history beating the 4:16 it took Jimmy Connors to beat John McEnroe in 1982 and ended in murky Centre Court darkness at 2116 local time (2016GMT).

Nadal shrugged off a rain-enforced 35-minute delay to the start to break first to lead 2-1 with Federer desperately chasing the Spaniard's power-packed forehands.

The 22-year-old then fought off a break point in the next game to back up his advantage which stretched to 4-2 as the Spaniard edged the world No. 1 in some brutal exchanges in tricky, gusty conditions on Centre Court.

Nadal unleashed a 96mph forehand to claim the opening set, the first set Federer had dropped in the 2008 tournament.

The 26-year-old Swiss star shook off his inhibitions to sneak to a 3-0 lead in the second set before Nadal battled back from 1-4 down to open up a two-set lead when Federer netted a simple-looking backhand.

Nadal saved a break point in the fourth game of the third set and four more in the sixth as the London skies and Federer's mood darkened.

The top seed saved three break points to lead 4-3 and was 5-4 ahead when heavy rain sent the players off court for 80 minutes.

On the resumption, a reborn Federer grabbed the third set with an ace in a tense tiebreak before serve dominated the fourth set leading to another tiebreak.

Nadal went to 5/2 in the breaker but the champion stormed back to lead 6/5 and claim a set point which Nadal saved.

Incredibly, Federer then saved two match points and grabbed another set point at 9/8 before levelling the final when Nadal, stunned by his failing nerve, went long with a forehand.

At 2-2 in the final set, more rain caused a 30-minute suspension.

On their return, Nadal saved a break point in the eighth game while Federer fought off two in the 11th and three more in the 15th but cracked to give the Spaniard an 8-7 lead.

Nadal went to a third match point which was saved with an inch-perfect backhand.

An unreturned serve gave him a fourth match which he converted to victory when Federer netted a backhand (Agence France Presse)

Roger Federer eyes 6th straight Wimbledon crown

WIMBLEDON, England - Add up all of Roger Federer's greatness on grass courts, and the numbers are striking: 40 wins in a row at Wimbledon, 65 overall on the surface.


Now he seeks an additional victory, a victory that would make him the first man since the 1880s to win six consecutive Wimbledon titles, a victory that would give him a 13th Grand Slam championship, one shy of Pete Sampras' career record.

And a victory that would have to come against his only real rival in today's game, Rafael Nadal.

No. 1 Federer and No. 2 Nadal set up their third straight showdown in the Wimbledon final, and sixth meeting in a major title match, by handily beating unseeded opponents Friday. Federer eliminated Marat Safin 6-3, 7-6 (3), 6-4 in the first semifinal, and Nadal defeated Rainer Schuettler 6-1, 7-6 (3), 6-4.

"There's one more left," Federer said. "I don't think it matters really a lot if I'm the favorite or not. I'm on an incredible winning streak on grass. First somebody has to be able to break that before we start talking differently."

He reached his 16th Grand Slam final, tying him with Bjorn Borg for fourth most in history. Borg was the last man to win Wimbledon five years in a row. The only man with six successive titles was Willie Renshaw from 1881-86, but he merely needed to win one match in each of his five title defenses because back then the reigning champion got a bye directly into the final.

"A little different," Federer noted.

On the other hand, the ease with which Federer dominates the All England Club these days sort of makes it seem as though he's getting a pass to the second Sunday. For the second time in three years, he's reached the final without losing a set.

"He didn't even give me a chance," said Safin, a former No. 1 with two major titles.

Federer walked out in his custom-designed cream cardigan, the one with the gold "RF" on the chest. Safin, in contrast, looked as though he might have just rolled out of bed, emerging from the locker room with his T-shirt wrinkled, his sneakers untied, his hair mussed. During the third set, a woman in the crowd yelled, "Come on, Safin, wake up!"

Federer did plenty well, but he served impeccably.

He smacked 14 aces, took 70 of 90 points in his service games and faced only two break points. Both came with Safin leading 2-1 in the second set, and Federer erased them in similar fashion: a second serve delivered right at Safin's body, setting up short returns that led to forehand winners.

Federer's return game was working, too, and he broke Safin in the match's second game and its last one. Asked if it was easy out there, Federer said, "Easy in terms of being able to control a really dangerous player who's got the potential to upset anyone — in this aspect, yes."

One example: Safin beat No. 3 Novak Djokovic last week. It was Djokovic who ended Federer's record run of reaching 10 consecutive major finals by stopping him at this year's Australian Open, then wondered aloud before Wimbledon whether the Swiss star was slipping. Djokovic thought Federer's 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 loss to Nadal in last month's French Open final — his worst loss in 179 career Grand Slam matches — might have left him "a little bit shaken."

Federer has scoffed at such suggestions and did so again Friday.

"For me, anyway, that final is out of the picture. I hardly remember anything of it. It went so quickly," he said, without a trace of irony. "Yeah, for me it's not really that big of a problem."

He also alluded to the fact that while he is only 6-11 against Nadal — 0-3 in French Open finals — over their careers, Federer does lead 5-2 in matches played on surfaces other than clay. That includes victories in the 2006 and 2007 Wimbledon finals, the latter a taut, five-set thriller.

That is why, Nadal acknowledged, "I believe I can win, but I also know he's the favorite."

Like Federer, Nadal faced only two break points Friday, and while the Spaniard did get broken once, he never was in true trouble. Thanks to that break, the 94th-ranked Schuettler went ahead 2-1 in the second set, then served for it at 5-4.

But Nadal broke the 2003 Australian Open runner-up there to pull even, and that was pretty much that. The only thing that really bothered Nadal on this day was the condition of his shoes, which he said were worn out from too much running around on the bare earth where the grass has disappeared near the Centre Court baselines. A member of Nadal's entourage tossed a fresh pair onto the court from the stands, and Nadal was back to his usual perpetual motion.

Afterward, Nadal spoke of how a Wimbledon championship would change his career. He'll try again, just as he did each of the past two years, to beat Federer to become the first man since Borg in 1980 to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season.

"It doesn't matter at any tournament who you beat. It matters that you get to take the trophy home," Nadal said. "But beating Federer would be special."

Borg showed up at the All England Club in 2007, and watched Federer match his modern mark of five consecutive titles. Borg returned this year and sat in the second row of the Royal Box on Friday, rising to clap when Federer finished off Safin to close in on breaking that tie.

"He is still hungry to win. He is still the No. 1 player in the world, and he wants to win more Grand Slam tournaments. He still has motivation to win. I think he will play many more years to come," said Borg, who walked away from the game in his 20s. "Sooner or later someone will beat him here at Wimbledon on Centre Court, but that might not happen this year." - AP