Bacolod boxer nears gold

Bacolod City-born boxer Joan Tipon moved a victory closer to an Asian Games gold medal, after stunning Olympic silver medalist Woorapoj Petchkoom of Thailand last night in a thrilling bantamweight semifinal clash in Doha, Qatar.
The 24-year-old Tipon, a lanky boxer from Purok Sibucao, Barangay Banago, scored on power punches and won the match by superiority, although the scoreline indicated a 13-all tie after the fourth and final round.
With the victory, Tipon assured himself of a silver medal. He will fight for the gold against South Korea’s Soon Chul Han --- a 28-19 winner over Mongolian Badar Enkhbat in the semifinals --- Wednesday night
Another Filipino pug, Violito Payla, will battle Thailand’s Somjit Jongjohor for the flyweight gold tonight.
A win against the South Korean will put Tipon on an elite list of Negrense prizefighters that includes Olympic silver medalist Mansueto “Onyok” Velasco and Reynaldo Galido of Bago City and Elias Recaido Jr. of Bacolod. The trio won golds in the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima, Japan.
Tipon, a Southeast Asian Games gold medalist, actually avenged the loss of another Negrense boxer, Godfrey Castro, who settled for a bronze medal, following a 20-40 setback at the hands of Thailand’s Suban Pannon.
Genebert Basadre, another SEA Games gold medalist, also settled for a bronze, after losing to China’s Hu Qing, 18-29, in the lightweight division.
Marking his first Asian Games appearance, Castro, 21, put up a brave fight in the first two rounds but lost to the experienced Thai. Filipinos inside the Aspire Hall 5 booed the judges each time Castro’s landed punches failed to register on the computerized scoreboard.
But Pannon proved too cunning for Castro and the Cadiz-born fighter wilted in the third round, before the referee stopped the fight one minute and 46 seconds into the penultimate round due to the 20-point margin rule.
Two fights later, it was Tipon’s time to turn the tables on a Thai fighter. The Bacoleño, who was also supported by Talisay City early in his amateur career, trailed, 2-4, the points coming from two solid shots to Petchkoom’s head.
A former Asian Boxing Championship outstanding boxer awardee, Tipon, who uses his counter-punching skills to pile up points, uncharacteristically went on attack-mode, tying the count at 5-all at the end of the third. He seized the initiative by landing a pair of left-right combinations in a rapid exchange for a 9-8 advantage, paving the way for a thrilling finish.
The Negrense boxer reached the 13-point mark ahead but Petchkoom, who employed some dirty tactics by clinching Tipon everytime he was at the losing end of the exchange, tied the match with less than a minute left.*Cedelf P. Tupas