Career
Born in Sorsogon, Farenas currently resides in Foothill Ranch, California. A hard hitting southpaw, Farenas is known for his aggressive style and his powerful punches. Featherweight
Farenas made his professional debut on September 19, 2004 against Octavio Olinar at the Sports and Cultural Complex in Mandaue City, Cebu, Philippines.
The bout ended in a technical draw after 2 rounds.
On March 15, 2008, Farenas challenged Mexican boxer Baudel Cardenas in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez big fight at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Paradise, Nevada. After knocking down Cardenas twice in the 2nd round, Farenas landed a vicious low blow in round 3.
The Mexican was given five minutes to recover, but he could not continue, forcing the referee to stop the match. In his next fight, Farenas moved to the super-featherweight division to face Fermin delos Santos.
The two fought on May 17, 2008 at the Plaza Monumental in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
The Filipino boxer defeated his foe via unanimous decision after 8 rounds. = First title On March 13, 2010, Farenas was included in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey bout. He took on American boxer Joe Morales.
The bout ended in a no contest after 2 round, because of an accidental clash of heads that opened a bad cut over Morales" right eye.
This forced the ringside doctor to stop the bout. Super Featherweight
In his next bout, Farenas challenged Marlon "Rata" Aguilar of Nicaragua in the undercard of the Latin Fury 14 pay-per-view, which showcased the return of Antonio Margarito against Roberto Garcia in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
The fight took place on May 8, 2010. Farenas lost by an eight round unanimous decision and practically blew away his chance at a possible world title bout.
Fareñas had difficulty handling Aguilar who had the edge during infighting sequences.
The Filipino boxer tried to be more aggressive in the third but his momentum was hindered when he landed a low blow. In the 6th round, the referee deducted a point from Farenas for low blows and then again in round eight. Another low blow from the Filipino fighter interrupted the last round action.
He then landed an undercard fight on the Pacquiao-Marquez 4 event on December 8, 2012.
He fought highly regarded Yuriorkis Gamboa in a 12 round battle for the interim WBA strap. Gamboa was show boating throughout the fight while Farenas maintained his focus.
Farenas was dropped twice which gave more confidence to Gamboa dropping his hands occasionally. On the 9th round Gamboa tried to finish of Farenas with a barrage of punches but Farenas countered him with a left hook that dropped Gamboa.
Gamboa stopped show boating after and tried to be careful until the final bell.
Farenas lost via unanimous decision but opened a lot of eyes for the boxing fans due to his gutsy effort. On April 27, 2013, Farenas fought an outmatched Gerardo Zayas whose record was 19-21-2.