by Rudolph Ian Alama
It
started as a dare during an evening party...but the end product was a huge
event which drew in Davao City's expatriate
crowd along with their Filipino friends, family, supporters, employees,
colleagues and curious spectators.
KA-POW in Davao was an amateur boxing event
held last May 27, it pitted two Davao City-based Americans in a three-round
boxing match. The event was complete with undercards (all-Filipino), licensed
referees, judges, beautiful ring girls, photographers, announcers, a boxing ring
set in a big gymnasium- The Davao City Recreation Center (Almendras Gym)
The event was initiated by Joseph William "Joe" Magnotti, who
has been boxing since 2011 taking up the sport as a means of losing
weight.
"At first it was a dare, I was learning how to box but wanted an opponent
to spar with, so I approached some friends. says Joe, a 37-year old Business
Process Outsourcing (BPO) businessman. Originally from New York, Joe a
third-generation Italian-American relocated to Davao City in 2009.
One of those who took up the challenge
was Daniel Christian, another expatriate who hails from California currently
managing a BPO company in the City. Daniel or Dan moved to Davao City in 2010.
Dan and Joe are among a dozen of young foreign BPO professionals setting up
shop in the City. Joe has several outsourcing companies that includes TryBPO
and AdSense Flippers which he co-owns with another Californian Justin Cooke who
is also based here in Davao.
Boxing Training
Joe was a heavyset American weighing at 113 kilos when he decided to pick up
boxing. Under trainer Nian Shiang Pe, He took up lessons at Marco Polo
Davao and had weekly sparring at Smashville Fitness Center. With boxing
Joe was able to slice 34 kilos, During the fight he weighed in at 79 kg.
Dan started training for boxing four months before the scheduled challenge
fight. In contrast to Joe, the 6-foot Dan took up boxing just for the fight and
the dare.
"I was only supposed to be a sparring match in a local gym, but it kind of
grew and grew until we said, hey lets just put on a huge event." Joe said.
It attracted corporate sponsors like Premiere Condoms and FHM Vixens. Proceeds
from the fight will be given to the Cancer Patients at the Southern Philippines
Medical Center and the Math Literacy Project monitored by the UP Mindanao
Community Development Extension Office.
The Fight
The fight had 8 undercard matches pitting amateur boxers which meant that all
the fights are three-rounders. The ninth fight featured the much
anticipated duel between Dan and Joe.
In the first round, Dan and Joe were sizing up each other, Dan tried to use his
longer reach to keep Joe at bay, Dan connected some jabs.
"We wanted to take the first round very easy, beat him up in the second
and then pick him apart in the third." Joe recalls their strategy.
But fighting in front of spectators made Joe tense, he was easy target for
Dan's jabs and when Joe tried to move in Dan would would grab Joe's head to
prevent him from launching his body shots.
By the second round, Joe became more
relaxed and started moving in. "Once I relaxed, he couldn't hit me."
Joe says.
By the latter part of the second round
and then the third round Joe began launching body shots to open Dan up. "I
felt he held his hands too high too much front." Joe describes Dan's
defensive stance.
During my talks with Dan before the fight, he talked about fearing Joe's power
which he built up during the months he zealously trained in boxing.
By
the third round Dan began to be easy target to Joe's one-two body shot head
cross. Dan began to tire out. After the final bell rang, the judges decision
went in favor of Joe, winning two rounds (rounds 2 and 3).
"It was an awesome experience." says Joe who admires Manny Pacquiao
and Ray "boom boom" Mancini.
"I can see it becoming addictive, perhaps a yearly event." Joe tells
me of his plans for another Ka-Pow. Perhaps this time he says he would like get
some new blood in the mix from the expat community.
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