Wesley So Crosses the Elite 2700 Elo Rating, Looks to Finish Strong

Individual standings after Round 9: 

7.5 points---GM Pavel Eljanov (Ukraine), GM Wesley Barbasa So (Philippines) 

7.0 points---GM Grzegorz Gajewski (Poland), GM Anish Giri (The Netherlands), GM Ivan Cheparinov (Bulgaria), IM Wei Yi (China), GM Gawain Jones (England), GM Bassem Amin (Egypt) 

Grandmaster Wesley Barbasa So (ELO 2684) defeated GM Marcin Dziuba (ELO 2602) of Poland to keep a share of the lead with GM Pavel Eljanov (ELO 2678) of Ukraine who brought downed GM Ding Liren (ELO 2709) of China after the ninth and penultimate round of 28th Reykjavik Open chess championships at Harpa, the 28.000 sqm. concert hall in Reykjavik, Iceland on Wednesday. 

The Filipino champion went for a queen sacrifice in exchange of a rook and bishop. The position was very sharp and So claimed a winning advantage with an exchange sacrifice. A very nice final sequence finished in a checkmate on move 41 of their Caro-kann defense encounter using the white pieces. 

According to National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) Chairman/President Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr., after the win over Polish GM Dziuba, So made history as he breaks 2700 Elo barrier. 

"Wesley's current live rating is 2701.4 after the win over Polish GM (Marcin) Dziuba," said Pichay, who watched the game live through internet. 

So's Rating Performance going to the 10th and final round is 2768. 

"We hope manalo si Wesley kay GM Pavel Eljanov sa last round para makuha nya ang first major title sa taong ito," added Pichay, who is also a member of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) board of trustees under the leadership of Jose' Peping" Cojuangco Jr. 

Eljanov, meantime played with black against Ding. The game was highly tense from the beginning because both players decided to expand their pawns on the flanks, leaving their kings uncastled. The Ukrainian was the first one to break in the center with a knight sacrifice for two pawns. The Chinese needed to play precisely to avoid losing immediately, but was not able to do so. He resigned on move 22 when black is about to create a super strong passed pawn on the queenside. 

"Brilliant din y'ung pagkapanalo ni Eljanov kay Ding Liren," last word of Pichay. 

Eljanov will have the white pieces on Thursday against So for the coveted title. Eljanov and So, both tallied 7.5 points in the ten (10) Swiss-System event which offers a prize fund of 15,000 euro with the winner taking 5,000 euro and the runner-up getting 2,000 euro. 

Bunch of 7.0 pointers are GM Grzegorz Gajewski of Poland, GM Anish Giri of The Netherlands, GM Ivan Cheparinov of Bulgaria, IM Wei Yi of China, GM Gawain Jones of England and GM Bassem Amin of Egypt. 

Gajewski split the point with Wei after 33 moves of Neo-Gruenfeld defense, Giri toppled countryman GM Erwin L'ami after 40 moves of Slav defense, Cheparinov routed GM Mustafa Yilmaz of Turkey after 41 moves of another Slav skirmish, Jones subdued GM Nils Grandelius of Sweden after 51 moves of English Opening and Amin shocked GM David Navara of Czech Republic after 38 moves of Bogo-Indian defense. 

So’s campaign is backed up by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) headed by it's Chairman/President Prospero "Butch" Pichay Jr., Secretary-General Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham "Bambol" Tolentino Jr. and Executive Director GM Jayson Gonzales. 

The tournament serves as So’s build up for the 2013 World Chess Cup scheduled on August 10 to September 5 in Tromso, Norway. Joining So in the World Chess Cup is fellow GM Oliver Barbosa. -Marlon Bernardino, Philboxing.com

Mayweather Jr. picks Guerrero, leaves HBO

Boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather Jr. and his team made not one but two announcements today, putting weeks of speculations and anticipation to rest. 

First was him naming WBC interim welterweight titlist, Robert Guerrero as his official opponent for his May 4th return bout at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. 

This, after the boxer’s recent announcement via Twitter two weeks ago, that IBF welterweight champ Devon Alexander is the front runner to land the bout geared for the popular Mexican holiday weekend. 

Guerrero, 29, (31-1-1, 18 KOs) of Gilroy, California has long been positioning himself with a fight against the unbeaten Mayweather Jr. He moved up to the welterweight division (147 pounds) last year after previously campaigning in the super featherweight and lightweight divisions (130 and 135 pounds) in the previous three years. 

Guerrero has been successful at his two campaigns in the welterweight class, scoring big wins against Selcuk Aydin and Andre Berto in 2012. He is the current holder of the interim WBC crown of which Mayweather is the regular champ. 

Mayweather Jr. also disclosed today that he will be showcasing his talents via another US network, CBS/Showtime instead of rival HBO which has been his home for the last 16 years beginning in 1997. Mayweather Jr. and HBO’s partnership produced hundreds of millions of dollars in pay-per-view generated income during that time period. 

Mayweather Jr. inked a record breaking six-fight career deal with CBS/Showtime beginning with his May 4th bout with Guerrero. The deal will enable him to fight exclusively for the network until mid-2016, meaning that he will fight six times in a 30-month period. 

The unbeaten Mayweather Jr. (43-0, 26 KOs) only fought twice in the last two years, a knockout win against former WBC welterweight champ, Victor Ortiz in 2011 and a UD win against WBA light middleweight champ, Miguel Cotto last May 5, 2012. 

This will be his first fight after serving two months in a federal prison for a domestic battery conviction last year. 

A formal announcement via a press conference of the Floyd Mayweather Jr. versus Robert Guerrero bout is expected in the coming days. 

via Philboxing.com

Two Weight World Champion Brian Viloria to Spar with Olympic Champion Zhou Shiming

China’s two-time Olympic gold medalist and three-time world amateur champion Zou Shiming will begin sparring this week with WBO/WBA flyweight champion Brian Viloria at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles. 

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum told the Manila Standard that celebrated trainer Freddie Roach said “he’s great and (matchmaker) Bruce Trampler thought he is terrific.” 

Arum said that the blockbuster card in Macau on April 6 will be “sensational and will be a huge success” as Zou Shiming will make his professional debut in a card that will also feature the WBO/WBA flyweight title defense of Viloria against Mexico’s Juan Francisco Estrada and former WBO super bantamweight champion Wilfredo Vazquez Jr will face Japan’s Yasutaka Ishimoto for the WBO International title. 

The Penalosa brothers undefeated Dodie Boy Penalosa Jr and the younger Dave Penalosa, sons of former two division world champion Dodie Boy Penalosa Sr, will also see action on the card while WBO flyweight mandatory challenger Milan Melindo will face tough Tommy Seran of Indonesia while Roman Martinez will defend his WBO super featherweight crown against Diego Magdaleno. 

Meantime, WBC straw-weight champion Xiong Zhao Zhong who is training in Thailand for his voluntary title defense was quoted by the Bangkok Post saying he is looking forward to fighting his Chinese rival Zou Shiming and claimed “all of China wants to see me fight Zou and I hope that this fight can be arranged soon.” 

However, Arum put a damper on the fight stating we “Don't want to mess with the WBC” but didn’t elaborate. 

via Philboxing.com

UFL players impressed with new Emperador Stadium

Some players of the United Football League were impressed with the new Emperador Stadium in Mckinley Hill in Taguig when the League staged its first televised matches in the venue last Tuesday night.

Loyola Meralco Sparks striker Freddy Gonzalez, who scored his team’s lone goal in the television debut of the field, said that the pitch might be the best one in the country today.

“So far it’s the best one. This one at least is a good mid-sized pitch so it’s good for the real games,” he said.

However, he admitted that the current quality of the brand new pitch, which has only hosted five UFL matches so far, made it difficult to play on.

“When I was dribbling the ball there, I tried to kick it and the ball got stuck in the rubber,” he said. “Give it a few weeks and this pitch would be fantastic.”

Sparks teammate and star Phil Younghusband also expressed the difficulty of playing in such new pitch.

“It’s still soft. To run on it , you need more energy to push off because its soft,” he said. “I’d like to make it bigger so we can run into the spaces but I hear that they’re planning to make it bigger eventually.”

Younghusband said that the closeness of the bleachers to the field is something unique for a football field, which are usually situated inside bigger stadiums.

“This is really nice. The fans are right next to the ground so it means that you can interact with the fans and they can see the players up close,” he said.

Pachanga Diliman midfielder Jason Cunliffe also said that the new venue is a welcome development for the sport in the country. “Look at the stadium. It’s good to be part of it,” Cunliffe said. 

Younghusband also thought of the same way.

“I’m really impressed and I really like it,” he said. “It’s great for Philippine football.”

via InterAktv

Successful Fiba Asia hosting ‘won’t be possible without PBA’—MVP

MANILA, Philippines—Business tycoon Manny V. Pangilinan expressed his gratitude towards PBA Commissioner Chito Salud following the league’s recent moves in boosting the national team’s preparations for the coming Fiba Asia Championship this August.

In a letter addressed to Salud, Pangilinan, also the head of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP), acknowledged the participation of the PBA and said that “the successful hosting will not be possible” without the league’s help.

“It is indeed an honor for the Philippines to host the Fiba Asia Championship this August, hopefully providing the setting for our country to capture another regional basketball crown – 40 years after we did, in the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship in 1973.  It is time for this,” said Pangilinan.

Just recently, the PBA agreed to lend players to beef up Smart Gilas Pilipinas before postponing its third conference to a later date and extending the current Commissioner’s Cup to make way for the Nationals.

“Accordingly, our sincerest thanks go to the team owners - Ramon Ang of Petron, San Mig Coffee and Ginebra; Wilfred Uytengsu of Alaska; Mikee Romero of Globalport; Bert Lina of Air21; George Chua of Barako Bulls, and Terry Que and Raymond Yu of Rain or Shine,” Pangilinan added. “We also thank the PBA Board of Governors and the Commissioner for their support.”

“On our part, the SBP commits all available resources to attain the success of Fiba Asia Championship, and the victory of Smart Gilas Pilipinas.” ”It is heartening to say that the basketball community has answered not only the call of the sport but, more importantly, the call of the country.”

via Inquirer.net

Size, Speed, and Smarts; Coach Chot Calls the Shots to Win FIBA Asia Title

For years, quickness has been the Philippine team’s calling card when it comes to international basketball competitions.

But the SMART-Gilas Pilipinas national team that will represent the country in the FIBA Asia Championship in August will have another feature: size.

Joining naturalized 6-foot-10 center Marcus Douthit in the national pool are 7-foot NLEX center Greg Slaughter from the PBA D-League, 6-foot-10 Petron rookie June Mar Fajardo of Petron, 6-foot-9 forward Japeth Aguilar of GlobalPort, and 6-foot-7 center Sonny Thoss, making the pool easily the tallest Philippine team ever.

Tall, athletic forwards Kelly Williams, Ranidel De Ocampo, and Jared Dillinger of Talk ‘N Text, Marc Pingris of San Mig Coffee, and Gabe Norwood of Rain or Shine provide additional ceiling for the team, without forsaking the speed that had been the trademark of Team Pilipinas.

Guards Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro, Ryan Reyes, and Larry Fonacier of Talk ‘N Text, LA Tenorio of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, Gary David of GlobalPort, and Jeff Chan of Rain or Shine round out the selection.

But more than size, Reyes said the team’s international experience would be key.

“I think ang bago lang dyan are Fajardo and Pingris. Most of them played in elite international tournaments,” said Reyes.

“When we participated in 2007, halos lahat wala pang experience sa FIBA Asia. This time we have not only the experienced players, we are assembling the tallest team we ever had.”