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RECORD:
27-2, 19 KOs » Fight History
TITLE:
WBA Super Bantamweight Champion
WEIGHT CLASS:
Super Bantamweight (122 pounds)
NICKNAME:
"The Towering Inferno " |
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He may the best-kept secret in boxing.
But not for long.
For “long” is what, along with power and a finisher’s mentality, should catapult Sycuan Ringside Promotions’ Celestino Caballero to the top in not just one, but several weight divisions.
Caballero, aptly nicknamed “The Towering Inferno” because he stands just a shade under 6-foot, made his mark in the 122-pound division Oct. 4, 2006, when he stopped highly favored Somsak Sithchatchawal in the third round to capture the World Boxing Association super bantamweight championship.
Just as impressive as the win was the manner in which the tall and lanky Panamanian did it.
Caballero stalked Sithchachawal from the opening bell, dropped him early in the third then went to work and finished the favorite. And Caballero did it under the most lop-sided of conditions. The fight not only was in Sithchatchawal’s home country of Thailand, but it was held at the remote temple site of Wat Ban Rai, Nakom Ratchisima, better accessible by helicopter than the winding, narrow road which connects it to the nearest major city.
Caballero enhanced his growing reputation with a one-sided win over Ricardo Castillo March 16, 2007, in Hollywood, Fla. Caballero dominated until the bout finally was stopped during the ninth round.
In his most recent outing Aug. 4 in Hidalgo, Texas, Caballero took a unanimous decision over Jorge Lacierva in a bout televised nationally by Showtime.
“The best is yet to come,” vows Caballero. “That I promise.”
Caballero, who is promoted by Sycuan Ringside Promotions and Seminole Warriors Boxing, has a record of 27-2 with 19 knockouts and 14 of his 29 bouts have been 12 rounds for titles.
The 31-year-old Caballero, born in and a resident of Colon, Panama, earned his shot against Sithchatchawal by stopping Roberto Bonilla in the seventh round Feb. 4, 2006, to win the WBA super bantamweight interim championship.
As he did against Sithchatchawal, Caballero used his long arms, relentless style and tremendous power to walk through Bonilla.
Caballero, who’s guided by Sampson Lewkowicz, managed by Rogelio Espino and trained by Francisco Arroyo, burst onto the international scene one year earlier, Feb. 17, 2005, when he upset another highly favored boxer, Daniel Ponce De Leon. Caballero took a 12-round unanimous decision, winning by scores of 118-109, 117-110 and 115-112, in Ponce De Leon’s backyard, so to speak, of Los Angeles.
There, undoubtedly, will be other title bouts, eventually in the 126- and 130-pound weight divisions as well, for Caballero’s height and build will allow him to move up easily.
“His future, no pun intended, is sky-high,” said Glenn Quiroga, president of Sycuan Ringside Promotions.
“Celestino is a unique combination of size, power and an aggressive attitude,” said Scott Woodworth, vice president of Sycuan Ringside Promotions. |
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Sycuan Ringside Promotions |
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