Philippine Showbiz Today 23
February 8 - 21 , 2018
Philippine Showbiz Today 23
Jerwin Ancajas made success in his U . S . debut and triumphantly defended his IBF super flyweight title . Ancajas ( 29-1-1 , 20 KO ) floored an annihilated Israel Gonzalez three times and stopped him in the 10th round .
Gonzalez ( 21-2 , 8 KO ) went down for the first time in less than a minute into the first round with a ferocious left hand from the southpaw champion . The Mexican challenger gave his best and was able to hang on to the fistic supremacy shown by Ancajas , but in the end the Filipino champ ’ s dominance succeeded .
Kinu-compare na rin lang ninyo ako kay Sir Manny ( eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao ) eh di aminin ko na sa inyo na gusto ko na rin naman talagang gayahin siya , ang lahat ng nagawa niya sa ating bayan at sa ating mga Pilipino ,” he told this writer in a long distance telephone interview Thursday following light training session .
“ Opo , I like to make an impact not only for myself as a boxer but as a Filipino as well , gaya ng ginawa ni Sir Manny . Marami kasi ang nag-kuwento sa akin tungkol sa di magandang pagtingin sa atin ng mga taga-ibang bans na nagawang baguhin ni Sir Manny ,” he said .
Ancajas said he experienced it himself when he and his party set foot at the Los Angeles Airport . “ Pagdating ko sa immigration officer tiningnan agad ako mula
Like his idol Manny Pacquiao , Jerwin Ancajas fights for Filipinos
ulo hanggang paa nang ipakita ko ang Philippine passport ko . Nang malaman niyang Pilipino ako at boxer pa , agad niya akong binati at ang sabi , oh Philippines , Manny Pacquiao .”
“ Noon ko napatunayan na tutoo pala ang kinuwento sa akin ng mga kaibigan ko . Sinabi ko sa sarili ko , gagayahin ko ang ginawa ni Sir Manny na ipakita kung anong klaseng tao tayong mga Pili [ ino at anong klaseng bansa ang Pilipinas ,” he exclaimed .“ At siyempre para magawa ko yun , kailangan manalo ako . Kailangan maging impressive ang panalo ”
The Magallanes , Cavite-based father of two boys with wife Ruth said that barely a few days before the fight , Gonzales remained mystery to him and members of his team .
He and his manager , he disclosed , were able to get hold of a tape of one of Gonzales fights sent to them by a friend two years ago yet . “ Wala talaga kaming alam sa kung anong klaseng boxer itong makakalaban ko .”
“ Wala kaming makitang tape ng laban ni Gonzalez kahit sa YouTube ,” Joven Jimenez , his manager-trainer , for his part said . “ Buti may nagbigay ng link ng laban ni Gonzales kay Garcia ( WBO light-flweight champ Ramon Garcia ), whom Gonzalez floored twice on the way to an easy victory . Garcia was the same man , who lost his WBO title to Donnie
Nietes in Bacolod City in 2011 .
In that fight , Jimenez said they noticed several of Gonzales ’ weaknesses . “ Ang problema two years ago na yung laban kaya baka nagbago na ang istilo ni Gonzalez . Counterpuncher siya , parang si Marquez ( Juan Manuel Marquez ). May right straight . Hindi siya magalaw , hindi takbuhin , hindi atrasin , mahina ang footwork . Pasugod at bihira mag-lateral .”
Without a clear idea of how Gonzalez fights , Ancajas said he will not rush things out . “ Paga-aralan ko muna sa umpisa kung paano siya gumalaw . Tatantyahin kung gaano kalakas ang suntok at gaano kabilis ang kamay at paa . Mahirap kalaban
ESPN5 : Window to the sporting world
A window to the world of sports . That ’ s what ESPN5 provides to viewers , especially for those who can ’ t get enough of sporting games — and consider sports as a way of life .
As a division of TV5 , ESPN5 is a representation of local and international sports events , offering a breather from the content the general entertainment market looks for .
As TV5 president Vincent “ Chot ” Reyes put it in a recent media call , “ We ’ re focusing more on the properties that we have a chance to succeed in .” That is sports , where the network finds its strength .
“ The morning is almost exclusively for international events , international sports . But the afternoon ( slot ) is for local content ,” said Reyes . “ We have a lot of local content , except that not all local content finds its way to television because we have limited hours of airtime but we make sure the afternoon and onwards is usually for local content .” He added , “ There are a lot more in store for the future , in the pipeline .”
Local content carries Philippine Basketball Association ( PBA ), Gilas , PBA D-League , Philippine Super Liga ( PSL ) and boxing , while international content encompasses NFL , US NCAA basketball , World of X Games , UFC Fight
Night , among others . SportsCenter Philippines , hosted by Aaron Atayde , Lia Cruz , Magoo Marjon and Amanda Fernandez , is local content ( a news program under the ESPN5 brand ) that tells stories through the lens of sports .
ESPN5 head Lloyd Manaloto cited the Milo marathon story of Mary Joy Tabal as example of thatstorytelling . He said that the standard report would be about Mary Joy ’ s fifth Milo run . The narrative , however , that SportsCenter broadcast carried her win and the death of her father . “ After the race , she was crying on camera and saying she had to run because it is what her father would
With ( clockwise ) Aaron Atayde , ESPN5 head Lloyd Manaloto , Amanda Fernandez , President Vincent ‘ Chot ’ Reyes and Lia Cruz
SPORTS
IBF super flyweight champ Jerwin Ancajas ( right ) connects on Mexican challenger Israel Gonzalez
have wanted her to do .”
Fernandez added that behind every athlete ’ s success , there ’ s a tale of struggle . “ It makes a lot of sense for SportsCenter and ESPN5 to highlight that — whether it be in the form of entertainment . It is inspiring a lot of people to engage with that athlete .” She brought Hidilyn Diaz to the fore as example of an athlete who continues to train at the gym in spite of her silver medal win in the Rio Olympics . Viewers get a sneak peek into that process , “ which is oftentimes painful ,” Fernandez said , that athletes go through . “ To be successful , to get the medal , you have to go through certain processes .” That as a tale is compelling — and engaging .
Speaking of audience engagement , IBF super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas came to Manaloto ’ s mind . According to him , Pinoys didn ’ t know the Pinoy fighter . “ And then , we knew ( that ) we were engaging fans because when he went to the States , there were Fil-Ams waiting for him ( at the airport ), who took
kasi nga hindi natin kilala . At ako , I ’ m sure marami siyang na-review na laban ko .”
“ Handa naman ako sa kahit ano ang kaya niyang ibigay . Sa nakita namin sa tape , lamang ako sa bilis at punching power . Damihan nati ang suntok at mas mabilis kaysa dating ginagawa ,” Ancajas , who has so far fought 30 times winning 28 , 19KOs , losing once and drawing once , said .
“ Gaya nang nasabi ko sa inyo noong mag-usap tayo bago kami umalis sa Pilipinas , hiling ko lang sa mga kababayan natin ang kanilang dalangin na sana ay tulungan ako ng Panginoon . Para a Kanya itong labang ito . Para a Pilipinas at sa ating mga Pilipino ,” he said . ●
selfies with him and it was covered by SportsCenter ,” recalled Manaloto . “ He has a following in Ireland , the US and also in China .” Engagement does not only boil down to an athlete ’ s fight but it also boils down to the story he has to tell .
In telling stories through the lens of sports , “ there ’ s drama but not a scripted drama … a real life , real-time drama ,” said Reyes . The reportage , however , remains objective .
That means ESPN5 captures the other games the athletes are playing beyond their sports . This type of reporting requires the hosts to go the extra mile from their usual newsreader role . “ We ’ re not just talking in front of the camera ,” said Cruz . “ We write our own stories . We have a team ( that ) writes stories for us . But once we get there ( at the newsroom ) early , we tweak the script and we write our own highlights . We are very much involved … We know what we are saying and what we are talking about .” Given its broadcast and online presence and coverage , ESPN5 is the window to the sporting world . ●
- J . Donato , PS