What's next for ALA Boys?

MANILA, Philippines - After scoring “statement” victories the other night, Z (the Dream) Gorres and Milan Melindo of Cebu’s fabled ALA (Antonio Lopez Aldeguer) stable are looking forward to bigger game as they come closer to clinching world title shots.

Gorres, 26, made an impressive debut as a bantamweight in blasting Mexico’s Roberto Carlos Leyva into submission at 1:29 of the seventh round to claim the vacant WBO Oriental crown at the Waterfront Hotel in Cebu last Saturday. In the undercard, Melindo, 21. carved out a hard-fought unanimous 10-round decision over tough former IBF minimumweight titlist Muhammad Rachman of Indonesia.

Aldeguer admitted he got worried in the middle rounds when Rachman, 37, started to take control and Melindo looked like he was running out of gas. But Melindo later explained it was all part of his plan.

“Melindo is a thinking fighter,” said Aldeguer. “Rachman likes to start slow and give his opponent some confidence in the first few rounds then when you let your guard down, he comes charging in. Melindo wanted to finish strong and that’s exactly what he did. Give Rachman credit. He may not be skillful but he’s smart, he irritates you, he takes away your advantage and he is very experienced.”

Aldeguer said the unbeaten Melindo is a proficient counterpuncher with fast hands and dizzying combinations but needs space to operate. Rachman narrowed the gap and crowded Melindo in the middle rounds to keep it close.

“Melindo had to adjust because Rachman didn’t give him room to throw his combinations,” said Aldeguer. “Rachman pushed Melindo to the limit. At the start, Rachman was favored in the heavy betting at ringside but in the later rounds, Melindo was the 10-7 choice. It was a popular decision and Rachman knew he lost.”

The judges had no difficulty picking the winner. Salven Lagumbay saw it 97-93, Noel Flores 98-92 and Edwin Barrientos 96-94, all for Melindo.

Aldeguer said he’ll bring in a Mexican for Melindo’s next fight.

“We’re not rushing him,” he went on. “We want to give him a variety of opponents. Melindo was impressive against Carlos Melo and Rachman but we want to test him some more. He’s about three to four fights away from challenging for a world title but he’s getting there.”

Aldeguer said since ALA’s Donnie Nietes is the WBO minimumweight champion, Melindo will look elsewhere for his title crack.

“Melindo can fight at 105 or 108,” he added. “We’ll take our time.”

Melindo is ranked No. 1 by the WBO, NO. 4 by the WBA and No. 6 by the WBC so he stood to lose his lofty ratings if Rachman won.

As for Gorres, Aldeguer said the Dream was dominant against Leyva, a former IBF minimumweight champion.

“He looked very comfortable at 118,” said Aldeguer. “He was aggressive and never lost steam. He forced himself to fight at 115 before and was often dehydrated. Against Leyva, he showed footwork and relied on his speed to give him his power.”

Aldeguer said he will arrange a US fight for Gorres before he challenges any of the bantamweight champions.

“Leyva was flat-footed and slow but was very dangerous because of his power,” said Aldeguer. “Gorres has always been a good defensive fighter so he knew what to do to avoid getting hit.”

Leyva, 29, never went down but didn’t take a single round as Gorres rained blows from all angles until the Mexican’s trainer Raul (Jibaro) Perez signaled for referee Bruce McTavish to call it a night.

“Gorres used to try to knock out his opponents and prove he’s not a boring fighter but he couldn’t do it consistently because that’s not his style,” said Aldeguer. “Now, he’s become an exciting fighter, very aggressive, going after his opponents because he’s more comfortable at his weight. Gorres looked big for a bantamweight and he showed he can still be quick.”