02.09.07 – By Chelo Cadena: The 2007 Labor Day weekend will remain on the inexorable pages of the boxing history as one of the most remarkable for Colombian boxers in decades. Since the forgotten times of great champions Antonio Cervantes “Kid Pambelé” and Rodrigo “Rocky” Valdés, Colombians haven’t taken more pleasure on boxing than they did over the weekend. The festival was possible thanks to the knockout victories of Juan Urango, Fulgencio Zúñiga, and Ricardo Torres.
Friday, August 31, 2007. Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA.
Former IBF Junior Welterweight titleholder Juan “Iron Twins” Urango (18-1-1, 14 KO’s) of Montería, Córdoba, started the boxing harvest at the Boardwalk Hall by scoring a fourth round TKO over Kenyan Nasser Athumani, to whom Urango inflicted his fifth defeat. Urango showed some interesting things, but his defense seems to be made out of pure carton and it is quite clear that he needs to work on that if he wants to become a Class-A boxer. But he won and proved to be a very dangerous guy.
Saturday, September 1, 2007. Tacoma, Washington, USA.
The Colombians kept celebrating when Edison “Pantera” Miranda’s friend, Fulgencio Zúñiga of Padilla, Valle del Cauca, consistently shook Victor Oganov´s amalgams and eventually knocked him out at 1:25 of round nine. Fulgencio Zúñiga (20-2-1, 17 KO’s), who made his US debut in 2004, became the new IBO Super Middleweight champion at the Emerald Queen Casino, from where he sent a clear message to his countrymen, Ricardo Torres.
Saturday, September 1, 2007. Barranquilla, Atlántico, Colombia.
Down in South America, WBO Junior Welterweight champion Ricardo Torres of Magangué, Bolívar, reaped the third knockout victory for the Colombian crowd. In the eleventh round, Torres was behind on two of the three scorecards and desperately needed to emulate Urango and Zúñiga. At the Salón Jumbo del Country Club, Kendall Holt was less than six minutes away from the yearned belt when the champion caught him with a tremendous, beautiful left hook to rescue both the belt and his reputation as a hard-hitter. Torres’s unexpected victory closed a perfect weekend that will be remembered in Colombia as the most productive in the history of the sport. The son of Magangué showed a lot of courage, soul, heart, and power, but the walls that protect him have so many holes that he will need to patch it if he wants to make a fourth defense.