Jhon Orobio and Moreno Fendero will both be in action on January 25, in the undercard of the gala featuring Erik Bazinyan at the Montreal Casino. Hailing from Colombia and France, they both moved to Quebec last year with hopes of becoming boxing champions. Today, as ring brothers, they share the same gym, the same dream, and, until glory and fortune arrive, the same roof.
“We’ve been roommates since October, and to be honest with you, we don’t understand each other, but everything is going very well,” says the pride of Besançon, France, Moreno Fendero. He points out that communication is still going well, thanks to the internet, even allowing him to improve his Spanish.
“He taught me two words the first time I saw him: ‘mucho dinero,'” he gives as an example, with what Google translates as ‘a lot of money.’
A big brother
To aspire to this prosperity, sharing expenses is an ideal starting point. In the corner of both athletes, in life as in the ring, Samuel Décarie-Drolet sees much more than a budgetary convenience.
“It’s always easier to integrate as a pair. Since Moreno arrived, the mix is good because he takes care of Jhon as if he were his little brother. Jhon is young, he’s 20, coming from the Colombian national team where everything was managed for him. Moreno, on the other hand, has a bit more life experience; he helps Jhon with his nutrition, his shopping, and all that,” he explains.
“Honestly, he’s a great guy, I’m just glad he’s with me, and I wish him to be a great champion,” says the smiling ‘big brother’ of 24 years old, enjoying Orobio’s barbering talents.
Proof of success
Speaking of the arrival of those nicknamed ‘The Soldier’ and ‘El Tigre,’ the one who has been working with Marc Ramsay for more than a decade sees a parallel with the past arrival of ‘Storm’ Alvarez and ‘Kaboom’ Rivas.
“Marc had made an offer to Eleider, but after that, he thought Oscar was also interesting, and if we brought them together, it would facilitate their integration,” he recalls.
In every way, the mission was successful because Alvarez and Rivas not only became world champions but also learned French along the way. Of course, they already knew each other and spoke the same language, but the fact that Orobio and Fendero are crossing this additional barrier together says a lot about their willingness to integrate. And they are not the only ones wanting to build a life in Quebec because before the Frenchman became a Montrealer, Orobio was roommates with Mehmet Unal, who left after getting a girlfriend from Trois-Rivières…
‘Talking Boxing’
But enough about friendship and love; we’ll leave the human side of the story to Réjean Tremblay. Now, let’s go with ‘talking boxing’, as Manny Montreal would say. Jhon Orobio (5-0, 5 K.O.) steps back into the ring for the first time in 2024 on January 25. In front of him, Juan Carlos Garcia (5-4), a tough Mexican nicknamed ‘Demoladeur’ or the ‘demolisher’ in the language of Molière. In Canada only, this 21-year-old ‘Demolisher’ has gone the distance with Spencer Wilcox and Eric Basran, so there will be an interesting comparison to make.
Also, some wondered why ‘El Tigre’ wasn’t on the last two EOTTM cards. It’s because he was back in Colombia to participate (and triumph) in the national amateur championships. However, the Olympic dream will have to wait because his weight class is still not part of the Games, and one of his good friends qualified in the category above him. The loop is closed, and now all the eggs are in the Montreal professional basket.
Meanwhile, in November and January, in Montreal and Quebec City, Moreno Fendero (3-0, 2 K.O.) was keeping an eye on things in the tigers’ ring. His fight on the 25th will be his second in 12 days, having defeated Victor Hugo Flores in the 1st round in the National Capital Region. Back in the Metropolis, he will face veteran Ricardo Lara (22-11-2, 10 K.O.), a guy who has faced half the country from 140 to 160 pounds. The practically nonexistent preparation time, however, does not worry Fendero; anyway, when your mantra is to train ’25 hours a day and 8 days a week,’ you can imagine that the remaining time is used for fighting.
