“On June 21, they pay tribute to Nino Jiménez at the Fernando Martín pavilion in Fuenlabrada and I will have the honor of competing for the Ibero-American title against Marvin Demollari, two-time Italian champion“. Says Brian Peláez.
“We are back after almost two years without fighting, participating in the tribute to Nino and demonstrating that the values of boxing are nobility, effort, sacrifice and respect. I will always support these initiatives to those who gave so much for so little.… I promise to put on a show.” So says Damián Biacho, also known as ‘Guinea’.
They both agree on pointing to the promoter Warriors Squad and the Intacto Sports Club as architects of an evening, next Friday, which will also feature a minimum of nine Olympic boxing matches (three rounds), with a musical performance by Costa Gamberro… and, indeed, with a heartfelt tribute to the figure of Nino Jiménez, European champion almost 50 years ago. “It is a shame that these athletes who have been so relevant at the time are hardly remembered today. In Nino’s case, even more so, since he is an excellent person,” José Miguel Gala, author of ‘ Life in three rounds’, biography of Jiménez.
“I am proud to have been a boxer. The nobility of that sport is not available to others.“insists for his part the one from Membrilla (Ciudad Real), now 71 years old, who began to exercise in the old Ferroviaria gym, who debuted as an amateur in 1970 and as a professional in 1973, to win his first national title in 1975 defeating José Bisbal Yes, the singer’s father.
It was December 3, 1976 when Nino was proclaimed European featherweight champion by defeating the Italian Elio Cotena by KO., with a first defense ending in victory against the French Siracusa and a second in which they lost against the also Spanish Massó. From there, six more years, for a final balance of 58 wins, nine losses and seven zeros.
The Fuenlabrada evening will serve so long later to pay tribute and thank everything that Nino did for boxing from a humble starting point, similar to that of Peláez, from Moratalaz, and Biacho, from Carabanchel., hence his enthusiasm for participating in two combats. In the case of the second, as ‘Guinea’ himself announces, it is his return to the ring after a too long period of time away from it.
It is true that, in the case of Peláez, the IBO title is a minor category in boxing compared to other organizations (WBA, WBC, WBO, IBF and The Ring), but also that it is still a professional fight against a careful rival. Biacho, for his part, will face the Moldovan fighter Andrei Sanjura, in six rounds at super middleweight.
The evening has taken turns, because it was first planned in Leganés and then in its final venue, but one day later: Saturday. The Fernando Martín will definitively open its doors on Friday at 7:00 p.m. and seats can still be obtained with a range of prices that goes from 20 euros for the Upper Tier to 100 for Row 1. The opportunity, without a doubt, is worth it.
