06/03/2019
BREAKING NEWS: "ROBSTOWN IS NOT THE WORST TOWN IN THE UNITED STATES, BUT A GEM," SAYS WORLD FAMOUS BOXER -- MANNY 'PAC-MAN' PACQUIAO (FROM THE PHILLIPINES).
[by HOMER ROEL VILLARREAL (361) 461-5968]
Robstown/Nueces County, TX -- Internationally famed boxer Manny "PAC-MAN" Paquiao after reading the USA TODAY (and perusing it's side-kick byproduct THE CALLER-TIMES putting down the City of Robstown --the hometown of former Olympian Boxing Champ Humberto "Lefty" Barrera) voiced that the study was way of kilter. He put on a Robstown Baseball Cap and agreed to have a series of interviews with iROBSTOWN.
Paquiao has agreed to other video-Cam interviews. But during one, from the top of his lungs, busted out saying: "Go Robstown, GO RED, GO PICKERS, don't let anyone break your spirit -- in my eyes you are a gem and the new generations carry the spirit to make the world a better place."
iRobstown's correspondent -- Michael "Mike" Contreras -- whom was a regional boxer for many years in this region of South Texas assisted in landing the cam video interview agreements for iROBSTOWN. Portions of the interview will be broadcast-ed via video on iROBSTOWN (a digital FACEBOOK newspaper).
Contreras, a Robstown native who owns Contreras Grocery and currently resides with his wife Elena in the Phillipines, has been instrumental in coordinating the efforts. Hopefully, he will persuade "PAC-MAN" to come and visit the small community simply known as "El Robe" by the humble, working class community. This journalist -- Homer Villarreal -- who will be hosting the broadcast -- will also urge the aforementioned.
WHO WAS THE "MAIN VARIABLE" THAT MADE THESE INTERVIEWS HAPPEN for iROBSTOWN?
Robstown's Michael Contreras. But also operating behinds the scenes and consequently helping iROBSTOWN to link with Manny "PAC-MAN" is a famous Pinay boxing champ known as Gerry, who was a world champ before Paquiao. He is now retired and has helped Paquiao over the years. This genial person's full name is Gerónimo "Gerry" Peñalosa (born August 7, 1972). He is a Filipino (or Pinay) former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2010. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBC and lineal super flyweight titles from 1997 to 1998, and the WBO bantamweight title from 2007 to 2009.
Originally from San Carlos City, Peñalosa currently resides in Manila. He was trained mainly by Freddie Roach, and went on to become a boxing trainer himself after retirement. Peñalosa's older brother, Dodie Boy Peñalosa, is also a former boxer and world champion.
On August 11, 2007, the veteran Filipino boxer -- that is,Peñalosa -- took on Jhonny González of Mexico for the WBO bantamweight title at the Arco Arena in Sacramento, California. Peñalosa went down in weight and uncrowned the Mexican fighter at the 7th round.
Peñalosa, a great humanitarian who has a gym and allows iRobstown's Michael "Mike" Contreras to train there, said to Contreras (who is training various young pinay boxers): "Produce for me, the next champion." He is concerned about his country's state, and wants to use the passionate craze many have for a better life to serve as a motivating propeller.
"PAC-MAN" HAS PERSONAL REASONS FOR IDENTIFYING WITH ROBSTOWN:
Zooming back to "PAC-MAN". Manny's full name is Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao but he is known by the by-name "PAC-MAN." He is "pinay" or Filipino and a professional boxer and politician, currently serving as a Senator of the Philippines. He identifies the economically-challenged community of Robstown and also with story of the late Coach Castro. He grew up poor in the Bukinon Province. "My family as a young boy couldn't even afford rice sometimes to eat -- I ate green bananas," he shared with iROBSTOWN. "My first punching bag as pre-teen was an old sofa. My community was put down by the larger areas and I was considered the most unlikely to succeed."
Manny runs by the byname "Pac-Man." He was born December 17, 1978, Kibawe, Bukidnon province, Mindanao, Philippines. He is a professional boxer, media celebrity, and politician, who became world-famous for winning boxing titles in more weight classes than any other boxer in history. His rise from abject poverty to the pinnacle of his sport was made even more remarkable by his life outside the ring. The charismatic “Pac-Man” was an idol and a unifying force in the Philippines, where his unprecedented popularity led to commercial endorsements, movies, television shows, CDs, and his image on a postage stamp.
Pacquiao left home as a teenager and boarded a ship headed for Manila, where he became a boxer. He made his professional debut as a junior flyweight on January 22, 1995, at the age of 16. Many of his early bouts were televised on a program called Blow by Blow, where his all-action style and boyish smile quickly made him a favourite with Filipino boxing fans. He won his first major title on December 4, 1998, knocking out Thailand’s Chatchai Sasakul to capture the World Boxing Council (WBC) flyweight title. After failing to make weight, however, he lost the title to Medgoen Singsurat of Thailand in September 1999. Pacquiao moved up in weight class, and on June 23, 2001, in his first fight in the United States, he scored a sixth-round knockout of Lehlo Ledwaba to win the International Boxing Federation (IBF) junior featherweight title. Following four successful defenses, he knocked out Mexico’s Marco Antonio Barrera on November 15, 2003, to become The Ring magazine featherweight champion.
Over the next several years, Pacquiao engaged in a series of high-profile fights, winning the World Boxing Association (WBA) and IBF featherweight titles, the WBC and The Ring’s junior lightweight titles, and the WBC lightweight title. His rise was aided by American trainer Freddie Roach, who gradually transformed the left-handed slugger into a multifaceted boxer without detracting from his natural aggression or punching power. He was the Boxing Writers Association of America and The Ring’s Fighter of the Year in 2006 and 2008.
THE CLOBBERING OF OSCAR DE LA HOYA (and ramifications):
On December 6, 2008, Pacquiao faced and clobbered American boxing star Oscar De La Hoyai in a celebrated nontitle welterweight bout in Las Vegas. By then Pacquiao had become a skilled fighter, bringing-together polished footwork, flaming speed, and a prodigiously improved defense, and he was widely considered, pound for pound, the world’s finest boxer. In addition, Pacquiao’s popularity as a pay-per-view (PPV) boxing attraction had increased steadily since 2002, but the match with De La Hoya was his breakthrough as a global sensation. The fight sold approximately 1.25 million buys, generating pretty-near $70 million in PPV revenue, one of the largest PPV financially profitable net-gains in history for a nonheavyweight bout.
ROBSTOWN IS A BREEDING GROUND OF CHAMPIONS:
There is no doubt in his mind, after researching THE CITY OF ROBSTOWN and tasting the spirit of iROBSTOWN'S editorials, that "ROBSTOWN WILL RISE FROM THE ASHES AND TOSSED IN THE EYES OF THEIR HATERS WHO slant and disparage the small community of Robstown made up of mostly low-income Mexican-Americans. FIGHT BACK. Put on your mental gloves. The media with a social class bias has distorted the THE REAL FACTS TO HIDE THEIR TAIL. THERE IS PRIDE IN BEING POOR. I TESTIFY TO THAT, AMEN."
"The City of Robstown is a breeding ground of champions from Congressmen to State Representatives to Journalists to Bishops to NFL players to activists that have humanized the world. My message to the new generations is: 'The world is your Oyster."
COPYRIGHT (C) 2019, iROBSTOWN
[more to come...]
