Boholano boxer Richard Rosales is showing a lot of determination on his way to Cebu where he is set to battle Ifugao sensation Carl Jammes Martin Friday night.
Denied several times of going out of his hometown of Talibon due to strict protocols, Rosales made sure he would be able to travel to Cebu by diligently working on his papers on time.
“2-3 hours ako nagbiyahe sa Tagbilaran akala ko pwde pa yung dati ko na swab test. Ang haba din ng pila kaya balik ako sa Talibon kasi sa munisipyo namin mas madali ang swab test,” said Rosales.
Eventually, Rosales was able to comply with his requirements but just as he was set to board the ferry that would bring him to Cebu, another crucial incident happened after his trainer Narciso Lofranco refused to join him on his trip.
“Ayaw daw niya iwan pamilya tapos ayaw din niya mag-quarantine ulit pabalik kasi ganun nga, may 14-day quarantine pa ang pabalik ng Bohol na galing ng Cebu,” revealed Rosales.
Now inside the Olmega Sports Gym in Mandaue City, Rosales is basically training on his own but is lucky enough to have friends who are trainers of boxers set to see action in the “Kumbati 7” fight card Friday night inside the International Pharmaceutical Inc. (IPI) compound.
“May kilala naman ako dito na mga trainers at may nakausap na ako na mag-corner sa akin sa laban. Ayaw ko kasi palampasin itong pagkakataon na masubukan si Martin,” said Rosales.
For his battle against Martin, Rosales will have many-time regional title contender Jun Arlos as his chief trainer.
A few other boxers were offered to fight Martin but it was only Rosales who stood up to the challenge of facing Martin who continues to create a lot of buzz because of his 15-0 record, 14 ending via stoppage.
A veteran of 29 bouts, Rosales (14-13-2, 8 KOs) may well be a good activity fight for the 21-year-old Martin who last saw action on December 21, 2019.
Meanwhile, Rosales was able to squeeze in one bout in this pandemic-hit 2020 when he saw action in Omega’s initial bubble boxing event last October where the Boholano pugilist bowed to the unbeaten world-ranked contender Christian Araneta via 10-round verdict.
Meantime in Thursday morning’s weigh-in, both Rosales and Martin tallied an exact 120lbs which is the contracted weight in their 10-round non-title fight.