Is Pagara ripe (for the big time) like Duterte?

That was a crispy knockout delivered by Jason Pagara in Davao City on Saturday night. In fact, the sensational stoppage was followed by an announcement that the winner would next lead a Pinoy Pride card in San Diego, California, in May.

However, it might help if Pagara’s handlers would bother to look back to see if the victory didn’t have shades of past hollow wins by the one-time bright hope but now lamented Ray “Boom Boom” Bautista.

Bautista, who was signed up by Golden Boy Promotions to lead a Filipino team against select Mexican fighters for a celebrated World Cup event in Sacramento, California, in 2007, was selectively pushed up.

Brandishing a 16-0 card, the youthful Boom Boom faced Daniel Ponce de Leon, whom the former pride of the Ala Stable must’ve thought would be easy as most of his past opponents.

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Result: Boom Boom, at a princely peak, got the shock of his young career. He openly took a horse-kick shot to the chin, was floored blind late in the first round. In the next round, Bautista, instead of sizing up the situation, charged ignorantly, and was knocked out cold.

In Davao on Saturday, the name of the Mexican—Cesar “El Dolar” Chavez—whom Pagara would go on to crush in two rounds, rang proudly, thanks to the legendary Julio Cesar Chavez, one of the great Mexican ring warriors.

However, like most of Bautista’s past poor opponents, Chavez whom Pagara dusted off in less than two rounds, was clearly a patsy. In fact, fight publicists for the Pinoy Pride card could not bother to hide the fact that the El Dolar label was infamously used on Chavez because “he loves to go up and down like the dollar.”

Please take note too that the matchmaker who delivered the hapless Mexican trial horse for Pagara was the same one who had arranged practically all of Boom Boom Bautista’s easy rides prior to his cruel end in Sacramento in 2007.

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There was no doubt the Pinoy Pride bouts, all won by Filipino entries, created quite a stir at ringside in peaceful Davao City.

But what truly intrigued sportsman Manny Piñol, who worked the fights with Bill Velasco for world television, was the consensus submitted by ringside notables about the respected Mayor Rodrigo Duterte of Davao City.

Piñol said “boxing people, like Ronnie Nathanielsz and Ed Tolentino, who covered the bouts for ABS-CBN, former agriculture secretary Sonny Dominguez, Manila-based sportswriters Beth Celis, Nick Giongco, Roy Luarca, Abac Cordero, veteran international referee Bruce McTavish, were supporters and believers of the tough-talking and incorruptible Mayor of Davao City.”

“They were unanimous in their belief that Mayor Duterte is the kind of leader the Philippines needs today,” Piñol said.