CEPCA president a diehard Pacquiao fan

CEBU, Philippines —  He’s a civil/structural engineer par excellence.

Currently, he is the president of the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE)-Cebu Chapter and at the same time director of the Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines (ASEP).

In Cebu sports world, he gains distinction as the longest serving president of the Cebu Executives and Professionals Chess Association (CEPCA) for six years and five months now to be exact.

But unknown to many, Jerry Maratas, owner of JEMAR Engineering Services and president of Celjem Construction & Development Corp., is also a diehard fan of Filipino sports hero Sen. Manny Pacquiao.

Maratas, who celebrates his 41st birthday today along with the staging of the first ever online tournament in CEPCA’s 30-year history, said he first noticed Pacquiao in the Vintage Sports-produced Blow by Blow shows on IBC in the mid-90s.

“My father used to watch boxing TV shows as he was a big fan of the sport. So I got my taste for boxing from my father,” he shared.

Maratas, however, said he became a Pacquiao fan only after the General Santos City brawler knocked out Chatchai Sasakul to claim the WBC flyweight title on December 4, 1998 in Thailand.

Since then, he watched all the action of boxing’s only eight-division world champion either via live TV broadcast or at the fight venue.

With his family in tow, Maratas was at the sidelines when Pacquiao fought twice in a row at the Cotai Arena of The Venetian Macau against Brandon Rios (2013) and Chris Algieri  (2014).

During his match against Rios, Pacquiao was coming off back-to-back defeats at the hands of Tim Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez.

Back home, the country is clobbered by three tragedies in succession just a month after each other - the Zamboanga seige, the powerful Bohol earthquake, and then the super typhoon Yolanda that claimed thousands of lives.

“That was a sentimental fight for Pacquiao. I  feel that he needed most the support of his fellow countrymen at that time,” said Maratas. “True enough, his resounding win over Rios provided some spark in the hearts of the Filipinos in times of great adversity.”

He was also at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia when the Pacman flattened Argentine Lucas Matthysse to snatch the WBA welterweight belt in July 14, 2018.

Maratas said he loves Pacquiao because he’s not only an excellent boxer but also a very exciting bell-to-bell fighter.

“There is always that thrill and drama every time he fights. Probably that’s also the reason why he’s so popular and became a crossover star,” he said.

Of all Pacquiao’s character traits, Maratas said he likes the most his strong dedication and unwavering perseverance. “I strongly believe that he became what he is now today largely because of those two virtues that he possesses.”

In his eyes, Maratas said Pacquiao had his best, and also had his worst as a ring gladiator.

For him, Pacquiao’s greatest performance was when he stopped Puerto Rican star Miguel Cotto to seize the WBO welterweight crown on November 14, 2009 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“I think his best fight was against Cotto. He was in perfect condition during that fight. He was not only displaying his blazing speed and powerful punches, but also his strong chin against Cotto’s heavy shots,” recalled Maratas.

“Cotto was an excellent boxer-puncher and a lot bigger than him and yet he was able to deliver a punishing TKO victory.”

And Pacquiao’s lowest point?

Maratas said it’s no other than Pacquiao’s fourth and last bout with Marquez wherein he was knocked out cold in the sixth round by the Mexican ‘Dinamita’ on December 8, 2012 at the MGM Grand. 

“He was on the verge of knocking Marquez off and get a convincing win against his nemesis but he got careless in the dying seconds of the 6th round and he paid dearly for it,” said Maratas.”That was a lost opportunity for him to erase all doubts concerning their first three fights.”

Like anybody else, Maratas also reflects on this worldwide health crisis.

“We are all not prepared for this. Our future uncertain as of this time but it seems pretty clear that we have to embrace a new normal until the vaccine is available,” he said.

 “So, let’s try to figure out on how to navigate our lives during this period with the virus a serious threat that could potentially kill us.”

Maratas eggs on everyone to follow the orders of authorities and be mindful and supportive to the needs of those deeply affected by this pandemic.

“With God’s blessings, we can overcome this pandemic that brought havoc to humanity,” he ended.