Sporting Chance

Papa Dio Espinosa is confident his son Luisito will bounce back from his recent loss to Guty Espadas Jr. in Merida. He insists the former World Boxing Association (WBA) bantamweight and World Boxing Council (WBC) featherweight champion isn't washed up.

Papa Dio, 63, blames Mexican trainer Robert Aguallo for failing to get his son ready for Espadas.

Aguallo, of course, is a convenient scapegoat.

Papa Dio says he never trusted Aguallo from the start. "Kadugo ni Espadas 'yan," he notes. Luisito himself confides that he kept his left shoulder injury secret because Aguallo might leak it to the Espadas camp.

Aguallo, who was born in Durango and moved to the US when he was three, was hired to train Luisito for his ill-fated title defense against Cesar Soto in El Paso last May. He was supposed to bring in an Espadas fight-alike to Manila but the sparmate, Humberto Soto, never arrived supposedly because of visa problems. Instead, Aguallo flew here alone and spent a week supervising Luisito's training before leaving for Merida.

Why did Luisito lost to Espadas? Here are six good reasons.

* Cramming. Luisito hadn't fought in 11 months. During his hiatus, he allowed his weight to balloon to as much as 140 pounds. For eight months, Luisito hardly worked up a sweat -- he jogged when he felt like some early mornings but on the whole, he laid off training. Luisito tried to work himself back to shape in three months but his 32-year-old body just wasn't up to the cramming.

* Inactivity. Luisito was supposed to fight Augie Sanchez in a tune-up last December but backed out due to the flu. The ring rust was evident against Espadas. Luisito's timing was off. He couldn't put his punches together.

* Weight loss. Luisito stormed into Merida 10 days before the bout and instead of dutifully limbering up in the gym, lay in bed and hardly ate to keep within the 126-pound limit. The sudden withdrawal from training dulled Luisito's competitive edge. Contrary to Aguallo's pronouncements, Luisito had difficulty making the weight. When he showed up for the weigh-in, Luisito looked emaciated.

* Poor nutrition. Nobody knew what to feed Luisito before and after the weigh-in. He gulped down pedialite, a kid's drink, to prevent dehydration. After making the weight, he feasted on steak, ribs, Kentucky fried chicken, and Japanese food. Dr. Sanirose Orbeta, the famed nutritionist, would've been helpful in planning Luisito's diet.

* No decent sparring. Don't take anything away from Philippine junior middle-weight champion Jerry Balagbagan who was Luisito's chief sparmate here. Balagbagan was the only fighter who could stand up to Luisito's punches and he repeatedly walked away from sweat sessions with blackeyes, welts, and a bloodied nose. But Balagbagan is no Espadas. He's slow and doesn't punch from long range. Luisito got used to fighting someone who doesn't fight like Espadas.

* Sloppy homework. Luisito studied Espadas' style from a tape of a single fight against Agapito Sanchez. Nobody bothered to check if Espadas had changed his style from what he showed in beating Sanchez in 1998. Espadas was a completely different fighter against Luisito than against Sanchez. Luisito was caught with his pants down.

Was it Aguallo's fault that Luisito wasn't ready for Espadas? Perhaps. But that's water under the bridge. Papa Dio says Aguallo won't be back in his son's corner ever. From now on, he's back in charge.

During the Espadas fight, it was Papa Dio who told his son to switch offensive tactics and turn slugger. The trick worked for a while because Espadas lost his range when Luisito brawled from the inside. The problem was Luisito ran out of steam. It was also Papa Dio who told his son before the 10th round bell, that his only chance to win was to score a knockout. Aguallo was surprisingly quiet in the corner throughout the bout.

Last year, Papa Dio was sacked as Luisito's trainer because of family squabbles. Apparently, Papa Dio often cursed at his son in training and couldn't control his temper. There were also financial problems involving father and son.

So Papa Dio was missing in Luisito's corner when he fought Kennedy McKinney and Soto. He was reinstated when Luisito returned to Manila last December but only as Aguallo's assistant.

Now, Papa Dio is back as his son's chief trainer. He promises to check his temper and won't be too harsh on his son. But will there be another chance for Luisito?

More about Papa Dio in Tuesday's column.