THRUST into the limelight, Merlito Sabillo promises an explosive performance when he stakes his World Boxing Organization minimumweight belt against cocky Jorle Estrada at Solaire Resort Hotel and Casino in Pasay tonight.
Sabillo did not predict a knockout but the former street fighter wants to make his countrymen proud after his 12-rounder with the Colombian, who earlier bragged of a seventh-round win by KO.
Belying his latent aggression, Sabillo said he would wait for Estrada to open up before launching an attack and, hopefully, going for the kill.
If Estrada turns out to be a solid, well-rounded opponent, the 29-year-old Sabillo is prepared to go the distance.
The protagonists of the headliner of Pinoy Pride XXI both cruised through the official weigh-in yesterday. The 5-foot-4 Sabillo tipped the scales at 104 pounds; the 5-3 Estrada weighed 103.
Owing to his unbeaten 21-0 record with 11 KOs, Sabillo has been tagged the favorite over Estrada (16-6 with five KOs) who vowed to avenge the loss of his compatriot Luis De La Rosa to Sabillo and take the crown back to Colombia.
In the chief support of the fight card being staged by ALA Promotions and ABS-CBN Sports, unscathed “King” Arthur Villanueva (21-0 with 11 KOs) clashes with knockout artist Arturo Badillo (20-1 18 KOs) of Mexico for the WBP Asia Pacific superflyweight title.
While Villanueva made the 115-pound limit outright at 114, Badillo came in at 116 on his first try. Badillo jogged around the luxurious facility for around 30 minutes to make weight.
Former world contender AJ “Bazooka” Banal (28-2-1, 20 KOs) tries to rebound from a knockout in his pervous fight when he battles Mexican Abraham Gomez (18-7-1 9 KOs).