Ni Gilbert Espeña
Opisyal nang inihayag ng Heavyweight Factory ang promosyon nitong “Rumble in the Rock” sa Marso 23 sa bagong Hard Rock Event Center sa Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino sa Hollywood, Florida na tatampukan ng 12-round WBA bantamweight eliminator nina No. 4 Stephon “Showstopper” Young at 5th ranked Reymart “GenSan Assassin” Gaballo ng Pilipinas.
Para sa Amerikanong si Young, ang laban kay Gaballo ang katuparan ng kanyang pangarap na maging kampeong pandaigdig matapos maging world rated sa mahabang panahon.
“It feels good,” sabi ni Young sa Fightnews.com. “I’m in shape and ready. I feel like I have my chance to show the world who the king of the bantamweights really is. Gaballo is obviously very strong. He’s 18-0 with 16 KOs, but I also feel like he hasn’t fought anyone like me yet. That’s a whole different story when you step up. It may be a case that his team is putting him into a fight like this way too soon. We will soon see.”
Goodbye PBA? John Amores, tinanggalan na ng professional license!
Mas bata ng walong taon si Gaballo kay Young at ito ang ikatlong laban niya sa abroad matapos manalo sa US at Mexico na kapwa niya pinatulog sina Mexicans Ernesto Guerrero at Ulises Rivero.
“I’m very happy to be fighting in this WBA eliminator, and I’m looking forward to being world champ one day,” diin ni Gaballo. “I know Young is a slick southpaw fighter and he’s working hard to beat me, so I have to train twice as hard as usual to come out on top.”
Masaya maging ang promoter ng laban na si Kris Lawrence dahil nakuha niya ang mga world class fighter tulad nina Young at Gaballo.
“This show brings back boxing in South Florida in a big way,” ani Lawrence. “I’m very happy to be able to present this great event at a world-class venue like the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.”
Magiging special guests sa sagupaan sina dating world heavyweight champions Riddick “Big Daddy” Bowe at Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield.
“We have very evenly matched fights and this event will be extremely crowd-pleasing,” dagdag ni Lawrence. “I invite all South Florida fans to come witness it live at Hard Rock Event Center.”
May rekord si Young na 17-0-3, win-loss-draw na may 7 panalo sa knockouts kumpara kay Gaballo na may perpektong kartada na 18, 16 sa pamamagitan ng knockouts.
