Mepranum prepares for his date with destiny: Will a new Filipino world champ be crowned tomorrow?

Richie Mepranum (Photo rights Dong Secuya/ Philboxing.com)

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Not too long ago, the province of Sarangani got itself the best boxer in the planet to be their Congressman, tomorrow they will most likely add their first ever world champion boxer in the name of Richie Mepranum (22-1-1 5KOs). 

Taken under the wing of Congressman-elect Manny Pacquiao himself, the Sarangani native Mepranum has been turning heads whole going 3-0 fighting on US soil, but faces a tough challenge ahead of him as he needs to convincingly defeat Mexican veteran Julio Cesar Miranda (31-5-1 24 KOs) in his own backyard.

Mepranum will relying on his slick style and precision counter punching in a 12-round showdown against a tough, tough opponent. Unlike Pacquiao and several other Filipino boxers, Mepranum does not necessarily have the one-punch knockout power. What he has a lot of however is skill and wit inside the ring. The kid has a big heart as well. I'm telling you, this one is for real.

Without the one-punch KO power, it's almost as if Mepranum goes to war with a knife against opponents carrying an AK-47. Out of 24 contests, he has only knocked out 5 of his opponents 3 of which had zero wins when he faced them.

But that's why the kid is such a joy to watch. His chin is made of granite and unlike other soft-punching fighters we are accustomed to seeing that avoid exchanges and stay on the outside, Mepranum loves to scrap and get the better of his opponents in exchanges. Mepranum can throw punches from all angles and has a pretty deep arsenal. 

Back in March during the weekend festivities in Dallas, Mepranum took the cake in my opinion and stole that show for what turned out to be a lackluster Pacquiao-Clottey card. His fight at the Gaylord Texan Hotel during the eve of The Event against Hernan "Tyson" Marquez was the most action-packed fight of that whole weekend. Mepranum neutralized the then undefeated KO artist Marquez's power with his feints, head movement and crisp counter punching.

This kid is for real and I got money in the bank on him raising the WBO flyweight title tomorrow night in Mexico when all is said and done. -- DG

Dennis Guillermo is a freelance sportswriter. You can reach him by email at dennisguillermo2@yahoo.com

 CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH RICHIE MEPRANUM 

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