THREE regional titles will be disputed during the Gabriel “Flash” Elorde Boxing Awards Banquet of Champions on Saturday at the Okada Manila Grand Ballroom in Parañaque City.
To be featured are the Magramo brothers Giemel and Arvin as well as 23-year-old prospect Albert Francisco during the banquet held in honor of boxing great Elorde.
The banquet is celebrating its 23rd anniversary and is returning from a three-year pandemic shutdown.
The former world title challenger, 28-year-old Giemel (26-3 win-loss record with 21 knockouts) takes on Thailand’s Sanchai Yotboon for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) global flyweight belt.
The 26-year-old Arvin Magramo (16-1-1 with 11 knockouts), on the other hand, clashes with Filipino fellow Joel Lino for WBO oriental lightweight title.
Francisco, meanwhile, collides with Chinese Chengcheng Yang for the WBO oriental youth flyweight championship.
The fights start at 3 p.m.
“It’s going to be a memorable night, but first we have to treat all the awardees and guests with total action,” said Liza Elorde, wife of Elorde’s son Johnny. “Filipino boxers, fans and supporters deserve to be recognized.”
The awards night will honor the country’s top professional and amateur boxers in 2020, 2021 and 2022.
Special Award of Distinction will be given to eight-division world champion and former senator Manny Pacquiao and four-weight division world champion Nonito Donaire Jr.
Pacquiao is already a Hall of Famer of the Elorde awards for having been named Boxer of the Year for seven consecutive times.
Seven boxers will be feted as Boxers of the Year—2019, 2020 and 2021 International Boxing Federation (IBF) super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas; 2019, 2020 and 2021 WBO bantamweight champion Johnriel Casimero; 2019 and 2020 IBF minimum weight titleholder Pedro Taduran; 2021 and 2022 IBF minimum weight champion Rene Mark Cuarto; 2022 World Boxing Council featherweight champion Mark Magsayo; reigning Internatonal Boxing Organization flyweight champion Dave Apolinario; and 2019 and 2021 WBO and World Boxing Association minimum weight champion Vic Saludar. Josef Ramos
The Elorde Awards will also honor Tokyo Olympics silver medalists Carlo Paalam and Nesthy Petecio and bronze medalist Eumir Felix Marcial as well as the 2019 Southeast Asian Games medalists in.
Also to be given out are the Philippine Champions, International and Regional Champions, Ring Excellence Awards, Top Honorees, Amateur Divisions, Citations and Posthumous Awards.
Besides commemorating Elorde’s 88th birthday, the annual festivity also pays tribute to the matriarch Laura Elorde, wife of Gabriel, who died peacefully in May 2020 at his residence in Paranaque City.
The first Elorde Awards started in 2000 at the Manila Hotel.