Ancajas sweats it out for Barrios title fight

OAKLAND, California – As Jerwin Ancajas removed his sweat suit, a spoonful of water gushed out from the edge. It was accumulated perspiration after a punch stick session Saturday night, September 22, at the fitness center of Oakland Airport Executive Hotel.

He then removed his training shoes and the socks were dripping wet, prompting chief trainer Joven Jimenez to request Mark Anthony Barriga to get the slippers of Ancajas, the reigning International Boxing Federation (IBF) junior bantamweight champion, from their room on the sixth floor.

Ancajas sweats so much he changes shirts three to four times and drinks two to three glasses of lukewarm water during his morning and evening training sessions since Wednesday.

No wonder, even if Ancajas still eats complete meals charted by a dietician back home, he’s certain to make 115 pounds on Thursday’s official weigh-in of his sixth title defense against Mexican Alejandro Santiago Barrios on Friday, September 28 (Saturday, September 29 in Manila) at Oracle Arena.

After the 1-hour 10-minute workout, Ancajas was alternately given a rubdown by Jimenez and conditioning trainer Delfin Boholst, who doubles as the team’s cook, with focus on the legs as they want to be certain that Ancajas won’t get cramps on fight night.

With Jimenez hampered by a swollen left ankle he sustained in a pickup basketball game on Monday in Magallanes, Cavite, Boholst, a former national amateur boxer, did the punch stick while Sydney-based cutman Todd Makelim, who got stopped by Manny Pacquiao in their super flyweight tussle in 1999, did the mitts with Ancajas.

The morning workout saw Ancajas and Barriga, who’ll be seeking the World Boxing Organization minimumweight crown against American Carlos Licona in November in the USA, jog and do sprints at the hotel’s courtyard and spend minutes at the treadmill and stationary bike of the fitness center.

Ancajas tipped the scales at 119 pounds Saturday night, leaving Jimenez satisfied as they’ve met their timetable.

“Maaga talaga naming kinuha ang timbang ngayon,” said Jimenez, noting that in Ancajas’ third title defense aganst Jamie Conlan in Belfast, Northern Ireland, last Nov. 18, Ancajas was still at 126 lbs six days heading to the fight.

“Maintain na lang and watch out na hindi mag-overtrain si Jerwin,” said Jimenez.

(We really made sure to reach our target weight early. We just have to maintain it and watch out that Jerwin doens’t overtrain.)

Interviewed by an all-Filipino crew of Bay Area Fan TV Saturday night, Ancajas said he isn’t taking Barrios lightly.

“Magandang bumato ng kumbinasyon at typical na Mexicano kung lumaban,” said Ancajas. “Puwedeng lumaro sa loob at sa labas.”

(He can throw a good combination, he fights like a typical Mexican. He can go in and out.)

No matter, Ancajas has been installed the heavy favorite over Barrios (16-2-4 with 7 knockouts owing to his better record (30-1, 20 knockouts), longer reach (3 cm) and height advantage (9 cm).

For Ancajas, however, these built-in advantages aren’t enough.

He has to sweat it out, a lot. – Rappler.com