Nietes, Palicte dispute vacant WBO belt
Donnie “Ahas” Nietes and compatriot Aston Palicte will be battling for the vacant World Boxing Organization super flyweight title in another all-Filipino world title showdown today at The Forum in Inglewood, California.
Nietes, 36, who is gunning for a fourth weight world division title, expressed readiness against hard-hitting Palicte.
“I’m ready and excited to become a world champion again. I hope we give the fans a good fight,” said Nietes in Filipino, adding that they would neutralize Palicte’s height advantage. “Just like what I did before against Moises Fuentes, we’ll use the same strategy.”
Nietes’ height is 5’4”—three inches smaller than Palicte.
Donnie Nietes (right) punches Mexican Felipe Salguero during a WBO light-flyweight title bout in Manila. AFP FILE PHOTO
“The knockout will come and we don’t need to rush it,” he said.
Nietes (41-1-4 win-loss-draw record with 23 knockouts) tipped the scale at 114.8 pounds while Palicte (24-2 record with 20 knockouts) came in at 114.6 pounds.
Trainer Edito Villamor is confident that Nietes will stretch his 31-fight winning streak that started in 2005.
“We are just ready and we prepared very well our strategy,” said Villamor.
Nietes is coming off a seventh round technical knockout win against Juan Carlos Reveco of Argentina last February to retain his International Boxing Federation (IBF) flyweight crown.
He vacated his belt a few months later and climbed up to the super flyweight class.
Palicte, meanwhile, is bent on breaking Nietes’ win streak and make a name for himself.
The Nietes-Palicte fight is the second all-Filipino world title bout after the recent match between IBF super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas and Jonas Sultan last May.
Ancajas won that fight.
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