The complete “Night of Champions” boxing card will formally be revealed in a press conference called on by event organizer ALA Promotions at 11:00 this morning at Lai Garden Restaurant situated at the second level of SM City-Cebu North Wing.
A resurgent ALA ring star Rey “Boom Boom” Bautista (25-1, 18KOs) will take centerstage in the main event of the double-championship extravaganza set on August 30 at the Waterfront-Cebu City Hotel and Casino as he defends his WBO Intercontinental super bantamweight title against Mexican hard-puncher Eden “Anestecista” Marquez (16-3-3, 14KOs) in a surefire 12-round brawl.
The 22-year-old Bautista is on a hot comeback trail since his devastating first round KO loss to WBO jr featherweight titlist Daniel Ponce de Leon during the Boxing World Cup on August 11 last year at the Arco Arena in Sacramento, California.
Bautista started to redeem lost pride and glamour when he scored a lopsided unanimous decision over Antonio Meza of Mexico to wrest the WBO Intercontinental crown on December 2 last year at the Araneta Coliseum. The Candijay, Bohol fighter previously kept his regional belt with a spectacular second round stoppage of Mexico’s Genaro “Duro” Camargo last April 6 also at the Big Dome.
Marquez, on the other hand, is no pushover having won his last two fights by short distance all within three rounds, the latest was a third round destruction of Ernesto Rivera last June 28 at the Salon Viva Mexico in Sonora, Mexico.
In the other main feature of the explosive double-header, Donnie “Ahas” Nietes (22-1-3, 13KOs), the first ever world champion from Cebu’s fabled ALA Boxing Gym of Antonio “Bidoy” L. Aldeguer, will put his WBO minimumweight throne on the line against Eddy “Totito II” Castro of Nicaragua (12-3-1, 9KOs).
Nietes will make the first defense of the WBO title he seized by defeating Thai Pornsawan Kratingdaenggyn by unanimous decision on September 30 last year at Waterfront.
Co-presented by ABS-CBN Sports, the “Night of Champions” is the second world championship show spearheaded by ALA Promotions in just a month after the highly successful “Laban na Banal” spectacle last July 26 at the Cebu Coliseum.