Tremblay vows Ana to fight like maniac

MANILA, Philippines - If Canadian promoter Allan Tremblay makes good on his promise, WBO female superbantamweight champion Ana (The Hurricane) Julaton will fight like a maniac in staking her crown against unbeaten Yesica (La Leona) Marcos in a 10-round bout at the Teatro Grego Juan Pablo Segundo in Mendoza, Argentina, this morning (Manila time). It won’t be easy defending the crown on hostile grounds but Julaton is prepared for the worst. She’s invading Marcos’ hometown where the challenger has fought 17 of her 19 bouts. Tremblay, who represents Julaton, has been assured by Argentinian promoter Osvaldo Rivero there will be no repetition of the riot that erupted after Filipino Johnriel Casimero stopped local favorite Luis Lazarte in Mar del Plata recently. Rivero was the same promoter who staged the Casimero-Lazarte bout.

Tremblay said the riot was an isolated case and isn’t worried about a similar eruption when Julaton takes on Marcos, a three-time Golden Gloves titlist as an amateur. “In my view, this was a ‘one-off’ incident in a country with a good boxing history,” Tremblay told The STAR in an interview. “I am subject to my own site inspection. I’m just being ‘better safe than sorry’ in my approach.”

A condition that Tremblay set for the match was the assignment of neutral officials. “Without this in place, we would not have taken the fight,” he said. “It was imperative to level the playing field and give Ana the best possible chance to succeed in what will be the toughest test of her career.” The WBO has appointed Puerto Rico’s Roberto Ramirez as referee and two other Puerto Ricans, Cesar Ramos and Jose Roberto Torres, as judges along with Panama’s Ignacio Robles. Ramirez is a veteran referee who worked the Orlando Salido-Juan Manuel Lopez fight for the WBO featherweight crown in San Juan last Saturday. He was also the third man in the ring when Nonito Donaire stopped Mexico’s Hernan Marquez in an interim WBA superflyweight title match in San Juan two years ago. The danger is the referee and judges are all Hispanic like Marcos. Julaton, 31, isn’t worried about fighting on unfriendly soil. Last September, she was in Merida to meet Mexican challenger Jessica Villafranca and hammered out a unanimous 10-round decision to retain the WBO crown. Julaton will try to make it two road wins in a row at Marcos’ expense.

Tremblay said Julaton is prepared to battle even as she hasn’t fought in over six months. Julaton saw action thrice last year, decisioning Franchesa Alcanter, Angel Gladney and Villafranca in that order. “She was extremely active through 2011 and as a result, had recurring cuts over the eyes and this gave her a chance to heal properly,” said Tremblay. “She has been training like a maniac in preparation for this contest. She trained at the UNLV gym under the guiding eye of Angelo Reyes who provided her with a long list of sparring partners over the last two months and she went through them three at a session over 10 rounds.”

Tremblay called Reyes the best-kept secret in boxing. “Angelo has been training Ana and he’s doing an awesome job,” he said. “Alfredo Perez of San Francisco will work her corner with Angelo and I brought in my long-time associate Marcelo de Croce from Buenos Aires to be the cutman and assist the team with the local environment. Of course, I’ll be there to ensure everything is done correctly.”

Tremblay said Marcos could be Julaton’s toughest challenger yet. “Marcos is undefeated and until a fighter loses, the confidence is sky-high which can sometimes lead to a false sense of security,” he went on. “She will come forward and throw punches from every angle and try to force the fight to be a brawl. Obviously, I cannot give away our game-plan but Ana is a ‘craftsperson’ in the ring and can punch harder than most people think so we shall see. I guess Marcos’ most dangerous attribute is her sheer volume of punches as she tries to overwhelm an opponent.”

Julaton has won her last four assignments and is on her second reign as WBO female superbantamweight queen. Her record is 10-2-1, with 1 KO. The losses were inflicted by Dominga Olivo and Lisa Brown, both on points. Marcos, 26, is the interim WBA/WBO female 122-pound champion with an 18-0-1 record, including 6 KOs. She has fought all her bouts in Mendoza except for two in Buenos Aires.

 “I want to show the boxing world that I will fight anyone, anywhere at any time and will do my utmost to represent the proud Filipino nation in the great tradition that they come to expect,” said the San Francisco-born Julaton whose parents are full-blooded Filipinos.

The fight will be aired on GMA tomorrow (Sunday) at 10 a.m. with a replay on GNTV’s “News TV All Sports” program on March 25 at 10 a.m. The GMA network recently signed Julaton to a three-fight coverage contract. “We’re excited about Ana’s fight which we will air on the GMA network in the Philippines, GMA News TV and GMA Pinoy TV worldwide,” said GMA chairman Atty. Felipe Gozon. “We have supported Ana’s boxing career from the beginning as we have always believed that she has the qualities of a champion.”