By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Negrense boxer Arthur Villanueva is not yet hanging his boxing gloves after recently signing a five-year contract with London-based Slovenian boxing manager Hinko Kostanjevec.

The Bago City, Negros Occidental-native said he was thankful to the new opportunity after his former boxing promotion ALA Boxing Promotions folded due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“As agreed, I will be flying and train in Slovenia when things are already good. I think this will be a great chance for me to get bigger fights,” Villanueva said in an interview with Sportsjourn.com.

“With my new deal, I am expected to earn at least three fights a year,” the 31-year-old Negrense boxer added. “Right now, I have returned to training with my fellow Negrense Merlito Sabillo.”

Villanueva admitted that thoughts of retirement had crossed his mind following his defeat to WBC world bantamweight champion Nordine Oubaali in Barys Arena, Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan in July 2019.

“I am already feeling a lot in my body. My left knuckle would swell up after every fight. After my last fight, my left eyebrow had to be operated on because of a cyst. I felt that those were signs that I had to retire,” Villanueva said.

“I was planning on becoming a trainer in China, but, because I received an offer after the closure of ALA, I thought of coming back and felt that it still wasn’t my time to become a trainer. So, I’ll give boxing one more try,” he added.

Villanueva, a former holder of the WBO Asia Pacific Bantamweight, WBC International Super Flyweight and IBF International Super Flyweight titles, has an impressive boxing record of 32-4-1 win-loss-draw with 18 knockouts./ASC, WDJ