MANILA, Philippines—Giovani Segura fights like a a lion in the ring, but is a lamb at heart.
The Mexican challenger stole the show from Filipino-American champion Brian Viloria in their first meeting Wednesday when he unabashedly shed tears upon mention of Manny Pacquiao and the Filipino ring icon’s charity work for his poor compatriots.
Segura choked, buried his head in his palms and in-between sobs said that he was deeply touched by Pacquiao’s kind gesture because his family in Altamirano, Guerrero, Mexico, also experienced hunger before he found boxing as a way out of poverty.
But don’t be misled by Segura’s unexpected emotional show before sportswriters and representatives of the organizing Solar Sports and Zanfer Promotions at the Palladium of the New World Hotel in Makati.
When he climbs the ring on Sunday morning, seeking Viloria’s World Boxing Organization flyweight championship at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City, Segura will turn into a beast and go for the jugular right away.
Viloria, of course, knows what Segura, who boasts a frightening 28-win, 1-loss, 1-draw record with 24 knockouts, is capable of doing, having sparred with the former light flyweight titlist five times in the past.
“I’m very confident, I want to show a great fight and prove the doubters wrong,” said Viloria, who admitted that their battle is unpredictable. “Between five or six rounds, somebody’s going to fall.”
According to Viloria, 29-3-0 with 16 KOs, he’s going to use his experience, speed, and versatility to offset Segura’s aggression and power.
Like Segura, best remembered for knocking out Puerto Rican legend Ivan Calderon twice, Viloria trained for nearly three months in his bid to claim the Mexican’s No. 9 slot in Ring’s (Magazine) pound-for-pound ranking.
The Viloria-Segura showdown will be available on pay-per-view through the Integrated Sports Media at $29.95.
In the PPV co-feature, Martin Honorio (31-16-1, 16 KOs) and Thai Fahsai Sakkreerin (36-2, 20 KOs), will clash for the IBF interim super featherweight championship.
Filipino Al “Captain A” Sabaupan (17-0-1, 12 KOs) battles Roy Muklis (23-3-2, 18 KOs) for the IBF Pan Pacific lightweight title in the undercard.