Adrianus to fight Aussie in first title defense

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian Orient and Pacific Boxing Federation lightweight champion Adrianus Taroreh will make his first title defense against Australia's Darren Miller here tomorrow.

The hard-jabbing champion, who won the OPBF crown with a split decision over South Korea's Jung Jin-noh in January, is not taking his much taller Australian contender lightly.

"It's a fight I have to win, as it could change the course of my boxing career. A loss would practically mark the end of my pro career, because promoters would shun me as a good-for-nothing bum," Adrianus said. "So I'll have to fight tooth and nail to pull this one off."

He said he likes fighting taller opponents."I'm basically a slugger, so it suits my style to fight a taller rival."

Adrianus, 27, said he has trained well for the match. "I have gone through more than two months of rigorous workouts, including more than 100 rounds of sparring. I'm quite fired up and focussed for the fight."

Miller, 22, was of course just as confident.

"I came here with only one mission: to wrest the OPBF belt from your boxer," he told reporters shortly after arrival at Soekarno-Hatta airport on Monday.

He said he would use his reach advantage to deadly effect, adding that he has never found trouble fighting a slugger.

Indonesian promoter Lineke Lolowang said if Adrianus beats Miller, she will once again promote the champ's mandatory defense against the top-ranked contender, a Japanese boxer.

"Should Adrianus win his mandatory fight I will do my best to get him a shot at a world title," she said.

For tomorrow's fight, to be staged at the Senayan Basketball Hall, Adrianus will collect a purse of Rp 25 million, while Miller will receive US$5,000. The bout is scheduled for 12 rounds. (bas)