Chris John stands tall in ring despite outside distractions<\/p>\n
Musthofid
\nThe Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Overshadowed by regional rivals Thailand and Philippines at
\nthe recent Southeast Asian Games, Indonesia has Chris John to
\nthank as its savior in the professional scene.<\/p>\n
The 26 year old from a small town in Central Java has put his
\nhomeland back on the world boxing map for the first time since
\nEllyas Pical became a world beater in the 1980s (the only other
\nIndonesian world champion is current IBF mini flyweight
\ntitleholder M. Rachman).<\/p>\n
Although his bout against Juan Manuel Marquez was pushed back
\nfrom December to the 2006 timetable, Chris John had rounded off
\nhis remarkable run of the year with a win over little-known Tommy
\nBrowne in Sydney in August to book his 20th KO win in 37 fights
\nwith only one draw and no defeats.<\/p>\n
Chris' win was expected, but it showed the fighter's mental
\nresolve amid a difficult legal wrangle with his former trainer.<\/p>\n
That drama also overshadowed his April bout in Jakarta against
\nwily veteran and former titleholder Derrick Gainer of the United
\nStates, with the Indonesian letting his light footwork and speedy
\npunching doing the talking to win on a judges' decision.<\/p>\n
Chris John, whose previous wins during Pan Asia Boxing
\nAssociation (PABA) fights came at the expense of a host of Thai
\nboxers, had beaten Oscar Leon in an interim title bout in Bali in
\nSeptember 2003, held in conjunction with a WBA convention
\norganized by the Indonesian Boxing Commission (KTI).<\/p>\n
The Indonesian took the full title in June 2004 with an upset
\nwin over Osamu Sato away in Japan. He defended the title against
\nJose Rojas in Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan, in November.<\/p>\n
Less than a month after the Rojas fight, Chris John, citing an
\nunfair allocation of match fees, decided to part with longtime
\ntrainer Sutan Rambing and signed up with Craig Christian of
\nAustralia.<\/p>\n
So began a prolonged dispute with Sutan, who threatened to sue
\nhis former fighter for breach of contract. Although the two
\neventually settled out of court, former boxing promoter Tourino
\nTidar, who is the WBA representative in Indonesia, also lamented
\nthe boxer's decision to train with Christian in Perth, accusing
\nhim of lacking nationalism.<\/p>\n
\"The Indonesian people must be disappointed by the decision,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Haryo Juniarto, a legal chief at the Monitoring and
\nSupervisory Body for Indonesian Professional Sports (BP2OPI),
\nalso said Chris John's decision was a bad precedent for
\nIndonesian professional boxing, stating that his contract with
\nSutan was legally binding.<\/p>\n
KTI was also in a snit, saying the boxer did not inform it of
\nthe Browne fight and calling Chris \"big-headed\".<\/p>\n
\"Chris John has forgotten his roots. He doesn't see KTI as the
\nboxing authority anymore,\" KTI chairman Anton Sihombing said.<\/p>\n
Encouragement about Chris John's boxing talent came from other
\nquarters.<\/p>\n
Former champion Syamsul Anwar, now a respected columnist on
\nthe sport, wrote that Chris executed a perfectly thought out game
\nplan against Gainer. After an early knockdown, he abandoned his
\northodox style of counterpunching by using a flurry of hooks and
\nstraight jabs.<\/p>\n
Chris' mettle will be put to the test again when he faces
\nMexico's Marquez. The air has been cleared from the disputes with
\nSutan and the KTI, but he will have to fight through an ankle
\ninjury that has already led to the fight being delayed from
\nDecember to its present Feb. 4 date.<\/p>",
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