By Lem Satterfield, FanHouseThe last time Bernabe Concepcion fought for the WBO featherweight (126 pounds) title was in August, when he battled then-champion, Steven Luevano, in a closely contested bout.
Trailing, 67-66, on two cards, and leading by the same amount on the third, the challenger from the Philippines inadvertently unleashed an errant punch after the bell ending the seventh round, flattening Luevano to his back and knocking him cold.
Under the circumstances, refereee Jay Nady had little choice but to disqualify Concepcion, ending his unbeaten streak of 20-0-1 that included 12 knockouts. "I didn't understand what happened. I didn't hear the referee tell us to break. I threw the punch, and it landed after the bell," said the 22-year-old Concepcion. "I think that I was going to win that fight. I was in great condition, and I trained very hard to win the title that night."
Concepcion will get another opportunity to earn the WBO crown in a Showtime-televised bout on Saturday night, when he takes on 27-year-old southpaw titlist, Juan Manuel Lopez (28-0, 25 KOs) at Coliseo Jose Miguel Agrelot, San Juan, before Lopez's home fans in Puerto Rico.
"JuanMa is a great fighter. A very tough fighter who has a lot of power," Concepcion said of Lopez, who dethroned Luevano in January with a seventh-round knockout. "I'm going to have to use my speed and my footwork, and, at the same time, apply pressure. I'm going to make it a tough fight for him."
Concepcion (28-3-1, 15 KOs) has bounced back from the loss to Luevano with February's 10-round, unanimous decision over Mario Santiago, who entered their bout with a mark of 21-1-1 that included 14 KOs.
Lopez is in only his second fight at 126 pounds, having risen from super bantamweight (122 pounds).
In his last outting at 122 pounds in October, Lopez was admittedly "dizzy," and "buzzed," and seemingly one punch away from being dethroned by Tanzanian journeyman named Rogers Mtagwa as WBO king.
Lopez, however, courageously retained his crown, even as teetered around the ring virtually out on his feet from the end of the 11th throughout the 12th.
But if he gets Lopez in that kind of trouble, Concepcion said that he won't let the champion off the hook.
"I've watched that fight. [Lopez] said that he was drained and that's why. He lost energy because of the fact that he had lost too much weight," said Concepcion.
"I think that I can do the same thing that Rogers did -- or even more than that," said Concepcion. "But I think that if I get him in that kind of trouble, I'll put a lot more pressure on him and finish him off. But it's going to be a great fight."
Like Lopez, Concepcion knows a little bit about being on the end of a comeback victory.
During a contentious match up with Giovanni Caro in September of 2008, Concepcion trailed on one of the three cards and was cut badly over one of his eyes.
After examining Concepcion following the seventh round, ringside physicians nearly stopped the fight. But Concepcion responded, scoring a knockout in the eighth.
"The referee strongly considered stopping the fight, but I wanted to take one more round, so he gave me one more round," said Concepcion, who began boxing at the age of 16.
"It's all about heart, and I showed that I had heart. And I did it. I won the fight," said Concepcion. "That was a very big victory for me. It was important to me. It was a great fight."
Since then, Concepcion's bravery has won the hearts of his Filipino countrymen. That includes his idol and seven-division champion, Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KOs), holder of the WBO welterweight (147 pounds).
"Bernabe has all of the ingredients to make a great champion," said Pacquiao on the website of Top Rank Promotions, which handles both Pacquiao and Concepcion. "He works hard and is focused only on boxing. We have very high hopes for him."
Those words are not lost on Concepcion.
"That means that Manny is there supporting us. He's my business manager," said Concepcion. "Manny knows that I'm going to work hard, and he knows that I trained very hard for this fight. That means a lot that Manny Pacquiao would say that about me."
Source: boxing.fanhouse.com
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