Dela Peña, Pangga vie in Asian Jr semis

PUERTO PRINCESA, Palawan, Philippines – The two remaining Filipino entries in the ASBC Asian Junior Boxing Championships will carry the brunt for the host nation when the semifinal bouts are held today at the Puerto Princesa City Coliseum here.

Pinweight Kenneth dela Peña will trade punches with Chinese-Taipei’s Yu Chen-Cheng in the second of 14 afternoon bouts beginning at 2 p.m. In the next bout, flyweight John Vincent Pangga takes on Kazakhstan’s Talgat Syrymbetov.

Of the two, Pangga faces the heavier task of facing a boxer from the the post-Soviet state.

Pangga will rely on his boxing skills that made him a standout in the country’s regional and nationwide meets like the Batang Pinoy and the Palarong Pambansa.

A swift and impressive first-round (RSC) victory over Saif Alkharoosi last Friday will also provide Pangga the needed boost heading to the semifinals of the event that drew 142 boxers aged 15-16 years from 18 Asian countries.

Dela Peña advanced to the semis with a 5-0 victory over India’s Soy Selay. Four of the five judges scored it 30-27 while another one had it 29-28.

Lightweight Norlan Petecio lost a 5-0 decision to Uzbekistan’s Sherzon Kodirboev in the semis the other night.

Petecio is the younger brother of Nesthy Petecio, a former Southeast Asian Games gold medalist and Asian Championships  silver medalist.

Dela Peña and Pangga advancing to the semis of the event put up by the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines somehow cushioned the impact of the bitter defeat suffered by light-flyweight Criz Laurente the other night.

Laurente had high hopes in this event until he ran into Kazakhstan’s Makhmud Sabyrkhan and took a 4-1 loss. He came out strong and won the opening round in the judges’ scorecards but yielded the upperhand by losing the next two.

Notes: The event is supported by Palawan Gov. Jose Ch. Alvarez, City Mayor Lucilo Bayron, Philippine Sports Commission, MVP Sports Foundation, Smart, Maynilad, PLDT, Wesing, Meralco, Meralco One Foundation, Philippine Airlines, San Miguel Corporation and Hotel Centro Puerto Princesa.