WHAT 20 of his compatriots have failed to do, Filipino Marlon Napales will try to accomplish today when he battles Thai Pungluang Sor Singyu for the World Boxing Organization bantamweight title in Ayutthaya, Thailand.
Pungluang has beaten all the Filipinos he has faced, the most prominent of whom is AJ Banal in 2012, and is again favored to add Napales to his list of 53 victims against just three losses.
Napales, a southpaw with a 28-2, 11 KOs record, however, is determined to dethrone the flashy Pungluang by way of solid body punches.
Both boxers tipped the scales at 117.8 pounds in yesterday’s official weigh-in, according to Philboxing.
Sor Singyu needed only an hour to shed off excess weight two hours before the official weigh-in, while Napales was unable to make it even after spending an hour at the sauna.
Tapales spent another hour of running under searing heat to clear the 118 lb limit.
Still, Napales, who is being managed by Rex “Wakee” Salud, is upbeat on his chances of besting the Thai and becoming a world champ. Roy Luarca