World Boxing Council (WBC) Silver Flyweight champion Edrin "The Sting" Dapudong woke up to a sunny Monday in Cancun, Mexico today and spent nearly one hour in an interview with popular radio and television host David Romero over the Carribean Radio, impressing the Mexicans with his humble demeanor and respectful view of the skills and strength of his challenger, Mexican flyweight champion Wilbert "Hurricane" Uicab.
"Muy simple," said the young Alejandro Garcia, son of HG Boxing Promotions owner Hector Garcia, who is co-promoting this fight with Quintana Roo newspaper publisher Pepe Gomez who is also the manager of the challenger Uicab.
Instead of making a prediction on the outcome of the fight and bragging on what round the knockout will occur, the 24-year-old champion, also known as the "Barefoot Boxing Prince," simply assured Mexican boxing fans and the promoters that he came to Cancun better prepared than he was when he fought and knocked out Jesus "Zurdito" Jimenez in Nayarit, Mexico last June 19.
"I prepared hard for this fight and I am confident of my chances to win. But I have a lot of respect for my opponent as all of us Filipino boxers respect Mexican fighters," Dapudong told Romero whose radio program is widely followed not only in Cancun and in all of the eastern part of the country facing the Carribean Sea.
Dapudong's humble demeanor impressed Pepe Gomez, the 42-year-old publisher of Quequi, a popular tabloid in Mexico.
Asked whether he could predict what round he will knockout Uicab, Dapudong said: "When I fight, I do not usually think of a knockout. But if there is an opportunity to do it, I will take it."
The fighter from M'lang, North Cotabato who dropped out of college to pursue his boxing career told Romero that he thinks inside the ring adding "I assess my opponent every round."
"I saw Uicab's previous fight on YouTube but I do not think he will move in the same way when he fights me just as they should not expect me to use the same strategy I used against Jimenez," Dapudong said.
In his fight against the former World No. 1 flyweight, Dapudong carried the fight to Jimenez pursuing the Mexican from the start of the bell in the first round and caught him with a wicked left hook that dropped Jimenez with barely 2 minutes into the fight. As soon as the Mexican fighter stood up, the Filipino fighter swarmed all over Jimenez and knocked him out with a thunderous right to the body.
Uicab is reputedly a strong fighter but he is a lot shorter than the 5' 5" tall Dapudong. The Filipino also has a longer reach.
Still, Mexican boxing fans are expecting Uicab to continue the winning streak of Mexican fighters against the Filipinos. So far, the Mexicans have scored at least six stunning victories during the last six months over Filipinos as against a few wins scored by the fighters from the Philippines including the victories of Nonito Donaire, Donnie Nietes and Dapudong in Tepic City.
The Dapudong-Uicab encounter, dubbed here as the Carribean Rumble, will be held at the Cancun Convention Center, in the heart of this beautiful resort city. It will be televised live in the Americas by ESPN on its Friday Night Live sports program.(pr)
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