With two Filipinos holding part of the world bantamweight championship and two more getting the chance to join them, another golden age in Philippine boxing may be in the offing, this time anchored on the bantamweights.
Johnriel Casimero is the reigning WBO world bantamweight champion while fellow Pinoy Reymart Gaballo holds the interim belt in the World Boxing Council after serving in the same capacity for a time with the World Boxing Association.
Meanwhile, former multi division world champion Nonito Donaire, Jr. gets the chance to become world champion again as he takes on WBC regular titlist Nordine Oubaali of France on a date and venue still to be finalized.
On the other hand, former IBO world titleholder Michael Dasmariñas is scheduled to challenge WBA-IBF and Ring Magazine champion Naoya Inoue on June 19 in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
We never had it so good as now.
In fact, this situation is unprecedented especially in the post war period following Luisito Espinosa’s initial success in the erstwhile waterloo division for Filipino fighters. Espinosa won officially the country’s first world crown at 118lbs in 1989 by shock first round knockout over Thailand’s Khaokor Galaxy in Bangkok.
Gerry Peñalosa followed suit in 2004 by wresting the WBO crown by late round body shot knockout of Mexican Jhonny Gonzalez. Donaire himself was two time world bantamweight champion, first in 2011 when he knocked out Mexican Fernando Montiel for the WBC and WBO unified belts which he vacated later and next in 2018 when he returned to 118 and won the WBA super belt by stopping UK’s Ryan Burnett. He lost that belt to Inoue in late 2019.
Casimero won the WBO title by second round knockout over the previously highly touted South African Zolani Tete in late 2019. He has defended the same last year, stopping previously undefeated Ghanaian challenger Duke Micah… Read More
