Don’t expect Rene Mark Cuarto to stay in front of Pedro Taduran and fight toe-to-toe when they clash for the International Boxing Federation minimumweight crown on February 27 at the Bula Gymnasium in General Santos City.
The fight plan, according to chief trainer Nonoy Neri, is for Cuarto to work on angles and find his spots.
“Cuarto won’t trade punches right away,” Neri, who runs the MP (Manny Pacquiao) Boxing Gym in Toril, Davao and serves as one of Pacquiao’s local trainers, said in Filipino.
“I really studied Taduran’s style and I’m sure Cuarto is going to make it hard for him,” said Neri, who foresees the main event of “The Puncher” boxing card being staged by MP Promotions to be action-packed.
While Taduran is tagged the favorite, Neri believes Cuarto has prepared well and is ready to wrest the 105-pound crown.
“He’s fast and his punches pack a wallop,” said Neri. “Over 90 % already, he’s good to go.”
The 5-foot-4 Taduran, a southpaw, boasts a 14-win, 2-loss, 1-draw record and is deemed to be the heavier puncher than the 5-foot-2 Cuarto (18-2-2, 11 knockouts).
Though Neri thinks Cuarto is Taduran’s equal in power, he wants to put Taduran on unfamiliar terrain on fight night.
Having worked closely with Pacquiao for two decades, it’s hardly surprising Neri is molding Cuarto to fight like the eight-division world champion.
Taduran, of course, also trained long and hard for his second defense of the title he kept by a technical draw against Daniel Valladares on February 1, 2020, in Mexico.
Accompanied by chief trainer Tacy Macalos, assistant trainer Romeo Monis, manager Vilma Acosta, and matchmaker Art Monis, Taduran is already in GenSan undergoing quarantine with his team. – Rappler.com
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