Suarez, Barriga are pro fighters, says GAB chief

MANILA, Philippines - Based on many indications, the Games and Amusements  Board (GAB) is now considering Mark Anthony Barriga and Charly Suarez professional boxers.

“We have to treat them now as professionals,” GAB chairman Ramon Guanzon told The STAR yesterday.

Barriga and Suarez, two of the finest boxers in the national team, are skipping the SEA Games in Singapore in June to honor a commitment to see action in the AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) tournament.

Barriga and Suarez, both gold medalists in the SEA Games and medal winners in the Asian Games, signed five-year contracts with the APB which runs on a year-long calendar.

Guanzon said to compete in the APB, Barriga and Suarez must now secure licenses from GAB, the body that governs all professional sports and events, including athletes, coaches and managers in the country.

“Our position is that they have become professional boxers and there are many indications. The name of the tournament alone, AIBA Pro Boxing, says it,” said Guanzon.

“They have contracts, they will receive a cash purse each time they fight, and they fight for six, eight and 10 rounds, like other professional boxers,” he added.

The Association of Boxing Alliances of the Philippines headed by Ricky Vargas has maintained that the APB is not a professional league and is just part of the AIBA (International Amateur Boxing Federation) program.

“The APB is not a professional boxing league the way professional boxing goes,” said Vargas, adding that in the APB, the boxers are not being controlled by managers and promoters but their respective national federations.

In fact, the APB serves as qualifier for the 2016 Rio Olympics, the ABAP said.

The ABAP also said that boxers in the APB will still be allowed to compete in regional events like the Asian Games, World Championships or the Olympics where pro boxers like Manny Pacquiao are not allowed to see action.

“We will just ask the GAB for reconsideration if they have really made a final decision on this. We will look at it and we will sit down with them,” said ABAP in a statement.

If they are professionals indeed, then Barriga and Suarez stand to lose their status as priority athletes with the Philippine Sports Commission and lose their monthly allowances of P40,000.

The ABAP said the issue has created distraction among the boxers in the national team, especially Barriga and Suarez.