MANILA – Negrense boxer Arthur Villanueva guns for his second straight win when he battles Carlo Demecillo in the undercard of Pinoy Pride 45 on Nov. 24 at the IEC Convention Center in Cebu City.
This will be the Bago City, Negros Occidental-native’s second straight fight since losing to Mexican Luis Nery in November 2017.
Earlier in the year, Villanueva knocked off Renren Tesorio in Pinoy Pride 44.
ALA Boxing Promotions’ Michael Aldeguer said it is important for Villanueva to have a solid victory against Demecillo in an aim to boost his boxing rankings and earn another shot at title match.
“It’s a very important match for him. He (Villanueva) has to win to be on track and to be considered for a world title clash,” said Aldeguer. “I know he wants to have another shot at a world title so I know he prepared hard.”
Demecillo’s trainer Christopher Tepora, for his part, said his fighter is treating the match as a payback after Villanueva defeated his elder brother Marco Demecillo in an OPBF title match on 2013 in Davao City.
“That is one of his motivations,” Tepora said. “This is a very important fight for him. He has been preparing for this since he knows Arthur is not an easy foe so we are also working on his stamina.”
The 29-year-old Villanueva, a two-time world title challenger, sports an impressive 32-3-0 win-loss-draw ring record. The Negrense boxer attained 18 of his victory by way of stoppages.
Demecillo, a current Philippine bantamweight champion, will be parading a 11-5-0 win-loss-draw slate with five stoppage wins. He came from a win against Margarito Moya for his belt./PN
