Suwito confident of WBF defense

Suwito confident of WBF defense

JAKARTA (JP): World Boxing Federation (WBF) welterweight title
holder Suwito Lagola of Indonesia is confident of retaining his
title in a fight against Frank Pena of the United States here on
April 17.

"I have trained intensively at my home town and here in
Jakarta for the fight and I feel confident I can beat Pena this
April. Apart from boxing training six hours a day with a sparring
partner, I have also been training with several-kilometer runs,"
Suwito said.

Suwito reclaimed the WBF title on Sept. 30 last year in a
tough match against American Jaime Larma. Suwito won in an
unanimous decision.

The 26-year-old was stripped of the title that he won in
October 1995 after refusing a rematch against Magahin of the
Philippines.

For his fight against Larma, Suwito received US$7,000 and
Larma, two years his junior, pocketed $20,000. The victory took
Suwito's record to 21-2, with eight of the victories within the
distance.

Instead of returning to Jakarta after reclaiming the WBF
title, Suwito went home to Binjai, North Sumatra. On Thursday, he
came to Jakarta to resume training.

Pena has a 15-3 record, with two draws and eight KOs. His last
fight was in 1993 when he lost to Juan Cervantes of Canada on
counts in a 10-round match.

Promoters will pay Suwito US$15,000 and Pena $5,000 for the
April fight.

Suwito said he was taking the match seriously. "Pena is
preparing well for the fight and for this reason, I don't want to
take Pena lightly."

Promoter Anton Sihombing said the fight had not yet been
approved by the Indonesian Boxing Council (KTI), although all
requirements to stage it had been met.

"We have fulfilled all the requirements, including down
payments to the two boxers. We are yet to receive a reply from
KTI. Suwito has also received 30 percent of his fee," Anton was
quoted by Antara as saying.

Anton hoped the KTI would issue a permit soon for the title
bout so the match would not be delayed. (lnt)