Rey Bautista is not a complicated character. He believes that he was put on this planet to be an entertainer, someone who steps into the ring not just to win but to put on a show for the public
The man known as ‘Boom Boom’ loves to fight, he wouldn’t still be going to toe to toe with opponents after nine years as a professional boxer if he didn’t, but he still feels a sense of responsibility every time he hears that bell ring.
It is not the pressure to win which drives Bautista on, it is the determination to make every round of his professional career as memorable as possible,
“I have always had the same style, I come inside the ring to fight, to entertain the people who are watching the boxing. They pay for the tickets and to watch the fight and that’s why I want to entertain them. I got the nickname because Mr Aldegeur thought I had the same style as Boom Boom Mancini, the Italian boxer. He fought to entertain the people and so do I.”
Mr Aldegeur is Antonio L. Aldegeur, the founder of ALA Promotions who has managed Bautista’s career for the last decade. The relationship between the two remains rock solid which is important for Bautista because he is a fighter who likes to keep things simple,
“It doesn’t matter to me where I fight. I don’t even mind about the money, I don’t think about that, I just want to fight. Only my trainer and my manager knows the purse. I only want to fight and when I finish the fight I can eat and I can enjoy life!”
Bautista grew up in Bohol an island to the east of Cebu and was encouraged to take up boxing by his Father. He has been fighting since an early age and soon discovered he had an aptitude for the sport,
“I had my first amateur fight when I was 9 years old. I started boxing because in Bohol there was lots of boxing, many young boys liked to play boxing and my father liked boxing, he never boxed but he used to do sparring in his town. That’s why when I was a little boy he wanted me to become a boxer. I had more than 100 amateur fights and I was a national gold medallist as an amateur.”
When the time came for Bautista to turn pro he decided to move to Cebu City to train at ALA Boxing Gym where he still lives to this day, although his success also inspired ALA to build a gym in his hometown,
“I was 16 when I first came to ALA and I had my first pro fight when I was 17. In my town there were lots of boxers but there is nothing like ALA Gym in Bohol and when I became ‘Boom Boom’ I told my manager it would be nice to build an ALA Gym in Bohol because there are a lot of boxers there and Mr Aldegeur built an Ala Gym in Bohol. There are many boxers there and when I have a vacation I go home and I train there.”
Although Bautista has won himself fans the world over with his fighting style he has yet to win an actual world title. He had a shot against Daniel Ponce de Leon in 2007 but an unfortunate hand injury prevented him from performing to his full potential in that fight,
“When I fought Daniel Ponce de Leon I broke my hand in training for that fight but that is the bad experience of boxing ,when there is a fight and there is an injury you need to continue to fight because you signed the contract. It was a very disappointing fight for me because all of my career I have fought the best I can but that fight I cannot use both hands because my left hand was broken so I was very disappointed.”
While a world title still eludes him ‘Boom Boom’ has achieved many of his dreams including meeting one of his heroes when he was preparing to face Segio Medina in Las Vegas in a WBO Super Bantamweight title eliminator
“My favourite boxer was Felix Trinidad because I like his style of boxing, when I was training with De La Hoya in Puerto Rico before his ifght against Mayweather I met him, I was very happy.”
Bautista survived a standing eight count in the 11th round to defeat Medina and earn the right to challenge Ponce de Leon for the belt and he says he regards the Argentinian as the most formidable adversary he has ever faced. After spending time with De La Hoya he also had the opportunity to train alongside his 2007 opponent in the so called ‘Fight of the Century’,
“I have trained in Las Vegas with Floyd Mayweather, I never sparred with him but I trained with Roger Mayweather his uncle. Floyd was always saying ‘who is the best boxer of all time’ and I said ‘Manny Pacquiao’! I also trained in the Wild Card with Freddie Roach.”
After winning seven straight fights Bautista is well on the road back to a world title shot and can take another step in the right direction by beating Daniel Ruiz at Pinoy Pride 17 on October 20th. The event will be held in the brand new Mall of Asia Arena in Manila which has a capacity of around 18,000 people and for Bautista the game plan will be the same as it ever was,
“I am fighting a Mexican, I don’t know much about him but I am happy to be fighting in front of so many people in the Philippines and I want to give them a good fight, I want to entertain them.”
Bautista, who plans to fight for another four years and then become a businessman, says he may look to change his style as he gets older depending on what his trainers want. For the time being his philosophy is straighforward and you can expect to see it in action at the Mall of Asia Arena on October 2oth,
“In boxing you know you hit and you get hit by an opponent. I am not afraid to get hit, that is boxing.”
Pinoy Pride 17 will be headlined by a world title fight between Bautista’s ALA Boxing Gym team mate AJ Banal and Pungluang Sor Singyu. For more information visit: www.alaboxing.com
Comments
idol keep working….
Hoy boang idol nmo ni na way silingan sa candijay Bohol dina managad og silingan na nadato sila pati ilang pamilya mora di ma maligyaay og tangkong LNG sauna…
Bautista will never be a world champion he’s bum i don’t see any improvement of him. no head movement stil a reckless fighter.
Bautista is fun to watch and a very entertaining fighter. His vulnerability of having a weak chin but never backs out to a fight is why people watch him. Boom-Boom you are one of my favorite Pinoy fighter more power to you!
pilde na pd…
Ang boksidor nga butboton pareha aning Rey Bautista dili kaayo layo ug maabtan sa iyang career. Dali ra kaayo ni molaos.
bohol is east of cebu, not west of cebu as you wrote…check your geography…
If you are personally a “crab”, please don’t show it here. Being a gladiator in the squared ring is no joke. The style that you dislike most (being boastful) is being used by some to raise their self confidence; and please don’t despise our boxers who apply this technique.
It is very easy to criticize, but very difficult to be a good boxer. So, all crabs out there, please “DO UNDERSTAND” our boxers. Let us encourage them to practice more and become disciplined boxers so that someday they can bring honor to our country…….
Ganun talaga style ni Boom Boom wala na tayo magagawa. Improve na lang nia chin nia at ang defense nia.
The article was written as if Bautista was another Sugar Ray Leonard. Ponce De Leon exposed Bautista as just a limited C level fighter.I am not being a crab here, just being honest.
Way silingan Ning tawhana na nadato.his a fucking winker
Taga candijay Ning boanga di managad MGa garboso na Dili angay mosikat kay hambogiro na na nadato….maayo ra og mapildi ka wa Kay hinungdan
bautista should not make excuses for a broken hand, any boxer has every right to postpone or withdraw from a fight if he injured himself during training, ive been following boxing for 4 decades and by watching a boxer fights i can tell if he is an A, B, or C fighter. unfortunately & with due respect, bautista belongs to B category…
@ Mexie – basin wala ka pahulama ug kwarta mao mo-ingon ka dili managad.