MikeLigalig.com

Written By By JOAQUIN M. HENSON
Columnist, Sporting Chance
The Philippine Star

Czar Amonsot was in his Las Vegas Valley Hospital room the other day, talking about his family, his future and his brutal fight against WBO interim lightweight champion Michael Katsidis.

I phoned long distance to speak to Amonsot who cheerfully took the call in bed. It was about 8 p.m., Las Vegas time.

“God will give me another chance to win the world title,” he said in Pilipino. “I’m sure Katsidis and I will meet again. I can’t wait to go home.”

Amonsot, 21, gave the unbeaten Katsidis, an Australian of Greek descent, the fight of his life in losing a 12-round decision at the Mandalay Bay Events Center last Saturday night.

Although Amonsot took a pair of mandatory eight-counts, he finished the bout on his feet. He decked Katsidis with a clubbing right to the head in the seventh round but referee Jay Nady ruled it a slip. If Nady called a knockdown instead, judge Patricia Jarman’s scorecard would’ve read 114-112 for Amonsot instead of for Katsidis. That’s how close it was.

“Not yet my time,” said Amonsot. “I tried my best. I feel bad I let my countrymen down. But I’ll be back.”

Amonsot blamed himself for getting tagged by Katsidis and suffering two knockdowns. His consolation was Katsidis conceding it was the toughest fight in his career.

Amonsot and Katsidis were in the same waiting room at the hospital after the bout. There were other boxers also in line for the SOP medical checkups.

“It was like a scene from a Rocky movie with all the fighters in one room, waiting to be examined,” said Amonsot’s manager Michael Aldeguer from Las Vegas. Katsidis looked like he lost, not Amonsot, because his face was a mess.”

Aldeguer said Golden Boy matchmaker Sampson Lewkowicz isn’t optimistic the Nevada State Athletic Commission will renew Amonsot’s license because of the slight bleeding in the outer skull.  Three CT-Scans and an MRI showed the bleeding never penetrated the brain, prompting neurosurgeon Dr. Debra Nelson to call the superficial hematoma something like a “black eye.”

Dr. Nelson advised three months of complete rest then suggested for Amonsot to undergo another MRI for final clearance before returning to the gym.

“The Nevada officials are very strict and Sampson isn’t sure if they’ll risk allowing a fighter to fight again after even a slight bleeding in the outer skull,” said Aldeguer. “We’ll wait for the commission’s decision.” Amonsot, 21, is the second youngest of nine children. His father Julian, Sr. died when he was only 11, leaving his mother Miguela, now 63, to take care of the family by working as a Metro Aide and selling fish and vegetables in the Tagbilaran City public market.

Amonsot and an older brother Wilfredo, a seaman, pool their resources to take care of their mother and a sister Zenaida who’s a third year education student at the Holy Name University in Bohol.

Amonsot said he’s eager to see his girlfriend Kate Valerie Tapere of Cebu. They’ve been going steady for 3 1/2 years. His message to Kate was: “Don’t worry. I’m fine. My condition is nothing serious. I’ll be back soon.”

Amonsot is arriving in Manila early Saturday morning.

Tagbilaran City Mayor Dan Neri Lim said the priority is Amonsot’s health and he wouldn’t advise resuming his boxing career until doctors clear him for training after another MRI in three months.

Lim was in Las Vegas for three days last week to encourage Amonsot and flew back home to watch the fight on TV.

A lawyer, Lim was also in Las Vegas to renegotiate the contracts of several Filipino fighters with Golden Boy. He worked out a three-year extension of Boom Boom Bautista’s contract. Both Amonsot and Bautista are from Bohol, Lim’s home province.

Last September, Amonsot lost the WBO Asia-Pacific superfeatherweight title on the scales and in miserable physical condition, was knocked out by Simson Butar Butar of Indonesia in one round before a disappointed home crowd in Tagbilaran City. He was earlier kicked out of Tony Aldeguer’s ALA stable when he was caught drinking liquor in his quarters.

But Amonsot changed his ways, promising Aldeguer and Lim to walk the straight path. He never strayed again. Last February, the reformed “bad boy” won the WBO Asia-Pacific lightweight crown via a split 12-round decision over Da Woon Jung in Seoul and earned the crack at Katsidis’ title.

Lim said Amonsot showed a big fighting heart in losing to Katsidis. “He proved he can take a punch,” said Lim. “He went down twice but got up. I’ll grade him 90 to 95 percent for ability to take a punch and 70 percent for ability to punch. If he ever fights again, I’d like to see Amonsot put more punches together, not just 1-2s. We’ll refine his training approach and introduce more techniques. But before we think about boxing, I want to be sure Amonsot is in perfect health. That’s the priority.”


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