Pete Apolinar (from left), Omega Pro Sports International VP Jerome Calatrava, and Omega Boxing Gym chief trainer Julius Erving Junco pose for a photo after arriving in South Korea on Thursday. | Photo from Omega Boxing Gym Facebook page.
CEBU CITY, Philippines— Pete “Thunder” Apolinar needs to finish off Korean Jong Seon Kang to prevent a hometown decision in their World Boxing Organization (WBO) Oriental featherweight title showdown tomorrow in South Korea.
Based on experience, Apolinar’s trainer Julius Erving Junco learned tough lessons already when they first faced Kang in 2019 in Vietnam.
One of Junco’s prized boxers, Tomjune Mangubat, fought and lost to Kang in 2019 for the same title at stake despite knocking the latter down in the second round.
Kang walked away with the WBO regional title with a split decision victory against Mangubat.
“They got lucky actually. One sided kaayo ang decision atong last fight ni Tomjune ug Kang. Even if natumba namo pildi gihapon mi sa scorecards,” said Junco.
(They got lucky actually. The decision was very one-sided that night in the Tomjune and Kang fight. Even if we knocked him down we still lost in the scorecards.)
“Lesson learned na to finish the opponent and never give chances. Always go for the kill,” said Junco.
Junco is super confident that Apolinar has all it takes to beat the Korean rising star, who is unbeaten at 13 wins with six knockouts and two draws.
Apolinar (15-1,9KOs) hasn’t been defeated since 2015 and is on a 10-fight winning streak. He won the Oriental Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) silver featherweight title in his most recent bout against Jess Rhey Waminal last July.
“I’m super confident for Pete. He is a very good boxer, very disciplined and hardworking plus the skillset that he has is very solid,” said Junco.
Junco also clarified that they were not there to avenge Mangubat’s defeat, but rather to prove that they were the best in the Philippines and Asia in boxing.
“Dili siguro about revenge ni. It’s about claiming we are the best in the Philippines and Asia maybe hahaha, We need to finish this job. This is another level of acid test. If kuha namo deserving na si Apolinar mu fight sa US,” said Junco.
(This is not about revenge. It’s about claiming we are the best in the Philippines and Asia, maybe. We need to finish this job. This is another level of acid test. If we can see that Apolinar is deserving then we will fight in the US.)
In addition, Apolinar is mentally and physically prepared for the bout. Junco gives credit to their team that contributed to their preparation amid the travel restrictions brought by the pandemic.
Even the official weigh-in of the bout wasn’t held publicly.
Apolinar weighed in at 125.8 pounds while Kang tipped the scales at 125.5lbs.
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