Saludar aims to be ‘Vicious’ in New Year’s Eve world title fight

Ryan Songalia

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Saludar aims to be ‘Vicious’ in New Year’s Eve world title fight
Vic Saludar wants to add another world title to the Philippines' count when he faces WBO strawweight champ Kosei Tanaka on New Year's Eve

MANILA, Philippines – When you’re a boxer and your first name is Victorio, the nickname “Vicious” is a natural fit. The 25-year-old from Polomolok, Philippines will have a chance to live up to it when he faces WBO strawweight titleholder Kosei Tanaka on New Year’s Eve at Aichi Prefectural Gym in Nagoya, Japan.

“I’m a vicious fighter,” Saludar (11-1, 9 knockouts) asserted.

Saludar has been a pro for just two years, but his boxing background is deep. His father, a corn farmer in a town just 30 minutes north of General Santos City, convinced him and his brothers to pursue the sport. 

The Saludar name has a strong reputation in Philippine boxing: His older brother Froilan (23-1-1, 14 KOs) became a top flyweight contender in the pros while Rey won a gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games. Vic won a bronze at light flyweight at the 2010 Asiad in a division that included two-time Olympic gold medalist Zou Shiming and future IBF flyweight champ Amnat Ruenroeng.

Saludar put gloves on for the first time at age 11, and those gloves took him to places he would’ve never imagined. After several years on the Philippine national team, Saludar decided to turn pro and aim for another goal.

“I wanted to be a world champion, that’s why I turned pro,” said Saludar.

Saludar knocks out Michael Kaibigan in one round

At 23, he signed with ALA Promotions, the Cebu-based company which produces the “Pinoy Pride” events on ABS-CBN. For company president Michael Aldeguer, the decision to sign Saludar once he stated his intention to turn pro was a no-brainer.

“We’ve always loved Vic,” said Aldeguer. “The Saludar brothers are some of the best talents that we’ve seen in the Philippines. Vic was always one fighter we knew who had it.”

His ascent through the pro ranks encountered bumpy air early on. Saludar turned pro in 2013 and knocked his first two opponents out in round one. In his third fight of 2013, just 4 months after turning pro, Saludar was stopped in the fourth round by Powell Balaba.

Saludar dropped Balaba in round one, but suffered a hand fracture with which he could not continue fighting.

“It was a lesson for me,” Saludar said. “I learned that I should be more careful when I fight. I blame myself because I wasn’t careful enough. I wanted to continue fighting and I knew I would’ve won. I was frustrated but I learned my lesson.”

Aldeguer says the loss changed the way Saludar fights, making him less aggressive but vicious nonetheless.

“The loss took away from what he wanted to do, which is be an aggressive fighter. I think he’s more calculating now, he chooses his punches more, he doesn’t really jump in right away,” Aldeguer said.

Since the loss, Saludar has run off 9 straight wins. But his level of competition thus far pales in comparison to that of his 20-year-old opponent, with none of his foes rising to the level of the 20-year-old Tanaka (5-0, 2 KOs).

(READ: 2015: The best of Philippine boxing)

Tanaka turned pro shortly after Saludar did, beating an Indonesian boxer named Oscar Raknafa who was rated number 6 in the world by the WBO. In May of this year, at just 19 years old, Tanaka outfought Mexico’s Julian Yedras to win the title he currently holds.

Though he fought about 50 amateur fights, without the same international experience as Saludar, Tanaka has the experience of going 10 and 12 rounds in his last two fights. Saludar has gone just 8 rounds twice, and his lone 12-round scheduled bout in September against Rizky Pratama ended in a first-round TKO.

Tanaka, an Economics student at Chukyo University in Nagoya, tells RingTV.com that he envisions this fight being a thriller.

“This bout will seem to become a very thrilling one, where both fighters can use their own speed and power.

“[Saludar’s] strengths are sharp punches and one-two punches. However, his weakness is a lack of experience for a 12-round match.”

Saludar likened Tanaka to two-time gold medalist Zou Shiming, an amateur rival of Saludar’s, because of his constant movement. Saludar’s trainer Benny Dela Peña said the goal is to limit Tanaka’s movement and force a fight.

“Vic will always be in front of him throwing punches,” said Dela Peña, who had Saludar spar with Filipino boxers Jeny Boy Buca, Jake Bornea, and Jetro Pabustan to prepare for this assignment.

With a win, Saludar would join WBO/RING magazine junior flyweight champion Donnie Nietes and WBO junior featherweight champ Nonito Donaire, Jr as the only current world champions from the Philippines. 

Servania returns in Japan – without ALA

Unbeaten Filipino boxer Genesis Servania (26-0, 11 KOs) is scheduled to face Indonesian Hendrik Barongsay (29-23-3, 18 KOs) in an 8-round fight on the Tanaka-Saludar undercard in his first fight since February.  

The unbeaten junior featherweight rose up the rankings under ALA Promotions, but Aldeguer says the fight wasn’t authorized by ALA and claims the company still has a promotional contract through August with the 24-year-old from Bacolod City. 

“The thing is, he still has a contract with ALA Promotions so we’re looking into that with our legal team,” said Aldeguer, who added that Servania was originally slated for a fight on the undercard of Donnie Nietes vs Francisco Rodriguez Jr in July but showed up to training out of shape. 

Servania didn’t respond to requests for comment but his Facebook page lists Kashimi Gym in Japan as his new workplace. In October he told reporter Dennis Principe that he was having issues with the trainers at ALA Gym. 

“I don’t see eye to eye with the trainers. We have a lot of issues.” – Rappler.com

Ryan Songalia is the sports editor of Rappler, a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) and a contributor to The Ring magazine. He can be reached at ryan.songalia@rappler.com. Follow him on Twitter at @RyanSongalia.

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