Tuñacao new world boxing champion

Vowing to go straight after finding the girl of his dreams, veteran Noel Tuñacao broke out of depression and a life of drugs to knock out previously unbeaten Abrinset Matta of Indonesia in the 11th round for the vacant International Boxing Organization (IBO) strawweight title in Bali yesterday afternoon.

It was a dramatic comeback for the 32-year-old Cebu fighter who turned pro in 1990, lost in a bid for the World Boxing Association (WBA) junior flyweight crown in 1992, took a 3 1/2 year layoff from the ring to exorcise the demons in his mind, returned to action in 2000, and seemed on the way back to hell after losing to Eagle Okuda in Saitama, Japan, last August.

Then, Tuñacao saw the light. His manager Terry Carter, an American Vietnam War veteran who has lived in Cebu since 1995, said love did it.

"Noel fell in love and is now planning to get married," related Carter, an exporter of silver jewelry. "I almost gave up on Noel. I got him from Mandaue to live in my house in Lilo-an. Then, he left and I thought it was over. But two months ago, he met this girl in Cebu and she straightened him out. No more drugs. He got serious in training so when the offer came for a Filipino to fight for the IBO title, Noel was ready."

Indonesian promoter Torino Tidar dangled a $4,000 purse for Tuñacao to face Matta for the vacant throne.

"I watched Noel spar a few days before he left and I was impressed," said Carter. "He punched hard. He was in shape. I told him if he loses the fight, that’s it. This was his last chance to turn his life around. He’s 32 and he’s been involved in drugs. It was now or never."

Tuñacao, whose younger brother Malcolm was once the World Boxing Council (WBC) flyweight titlist, flew to Bali with trainer Juanito Ablaca and fight agent Leonel Lazarito.

At the weigh-in the other day, Tuñacao tipped the scales at 105 pounds — the strawweight limit — and Matta, 104.

"Ablaca called long distance after the weigh-in and told me Noel would win for sure," said Carter. "Matta looked like a novice. Real skinny. Noel probably weighed 118 pounds when the fight started."

As it turned out, Matta proved no match for Tuñacao. Ablaca said Tuñacao dominated the action from start to finish, except in the seventh round when the Filipino relaxed to catch his breath. In the 11th, Tuñacao went for the kill, realizing he couldn’t discount the possibility of losing on a hometown decision. A series of combinations to the head sent Matta to the canvas for the full count. The Indonesian lay unconscious for several scary minutes before he was revived.

"It’s a great story for fighters who are close to losing hope," said Carter. "Noel’s been to hell and back. He knew this was it. He knew that if he wanted to start a new life with a family, he had to win. That was all the motivation he needed."

Tuñacao, Ablaca and Lazarito arrive from Bali at 6:30 tonight.

One of nine children and four boys, Tuñacao is the only bachelor in the family. His father Jose is a driver and his mother Ponciana keeps house. A brother Roy tried his luck as a fighter but never progressed.

Tuñacao turned pro in 1990 as one of the stars in Tony Aldeguer’s stable in Cebu. He was unbeaten in his first 17 bouts then lost a unanimous 12-round decision to Hiroki Ioka in a bid for the WBA 108-pound title in Kitakyushu, southern Japan, in 1992. Tuñacao went on to win four fights before he lost to Ronnie Magramo on a fourth round stoppage in 1993.

In 1995, Tuñacao captured the Philippine junior flyweight crown, decisioning Roberto (Amay) Padilla but lost it to Lee Escobido on a second round knockout in his first defense a few months later. Still shaky after the Escobido debacle, Tuñacao was stopped by Rustico Torrecampo — one of only two fighters ever to beat Manny Pacquiao — in the sixth round in his next outing. That led to Tuñacao’s 3 1/2 year hiatus.

In 2000, Tuñacao staged a comeback. He strung up 10 straight wins — one of his victims was former WBA interim minimumweight champion Songkram Porpaoin — then ran into Okuda last August.

For a while, it looked like Tuñacao would drift back into drugs and waste his life away. But love has a way of setting you straight.

The win over Matta raised Tuñacao’s record to 38-6-2, with 18 KOs. Matta’s mark slipped to 17-1-1.

The IBO, the self-proclaimed "champion of integrity" for being "the only sanctioning body in the sport to exclusively use an unbiased computerized ranking system," is based in Coral Gables, Florida. IBO president Ed Levine was recently named one of pro boxing’s 50 most influential figures by Boxing Digest.

Melvin Magramo, Tiger Ari and Wendyl Janiola were Filipinos who’ve fought and lost in IBO title fights since last year. Other Filipinos who were beaten in IBO championship bouts were Al Coquilla, Bert Granciosa, and Rolando Pascua. The first Filipino IBO titleholder was Amado (Mad Dog) Cabato who took the lightweight diadem on an eighth round stoppage of Darrell Hiles in Australia in 1994. Cabato lost the crown to Lester Ellis in his first defense and failed in an attempt to regain it, bowing to Billy Irwin on points in Toronto in 1995.

While the IBO isn’t as prestigious as the World Boxing Council or the World Boxing Association or the International Boxing Federation, it’s still a legitimate global governing body whose champions include heavyweight Lennox Lewis, lightheavyweight Roy Jones, featherweight Naseem Hamed, and superbantamweight Paulie Ayala. So Tuñacao is in elite company.