Mobile Home | Desktop Version
FROILAN SALUDAR RETURNS AS A BANTAMWEIGHT
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 05 Dec 2018
Froilan Saludar.
Over the weekend and under the radar, former world title challenger Froilan “The Sniper” Saludar returned to the ring in Iligan City and scored a TKO win over journeyman Donny Mabao.
Saludar lost to then reigning WBO flyweight champion Sho Kimura of Japan last July 27 in Qingdao,China. Saludar dominated Kimura in the first two rounds. But the Japanese showed resiliency and heart and unloaded hellish body shots, eventually dropping Saludar in the fifth and finishing the job in the sixth.
Saludar’s camp cited problems in dropping to 112lbs as the main reason for the collapse. They planned to move up a couple of divisions higher.
The 29 year old Saludar weighed 117lbs during the official weigh-in for his December 1 bout against Mabao, who was two pounds heavier.
The official result sent to this writer stated Saludar winning by TKO due to a body shot in the final round of an eight rounder. Time 1:56. Saludar is now 29-3-1,20KO’s. Mabao drops to 22-39-3,4KO’s. The fight was held at the Central Market Gym in Poblacion, Iligan City and promoted by Arnold Palafox. The main bouts saw Clyde Azarcon beating Ronnie Tanallon by 7th round TKO and Cris Ganoza winning by unanimous decision over Ryan Ralozo.
Kimura is now an ex-champion having lost his title last September to countryman Kosei Tanaka by majority decision in a brutal and scintillating contest.
Froilan winning the title would have made Philippine sports history. His brother Vic Saludar won the WBO world minimumweight title last July 13 by unanimous decision against Japanese Ryuya Yamanaka in Kobe, Japan. They could have been the first Filipino brothers to win world titles on the same month.
So if Froilan stays at bantamweight, what are his options?
The World Boxing Super Series bantamweight tournament is ongoing. The Filipino Flash, Nonito Donaire dethroned WBA super champion Ryan Burnett of the U.K. last November 3 after Burnett suffered a back injury in the fourth round.
Donaire is slated to fight the WBO champion Zolani Tete of South Africa in the tournament semi-finals. Last October, Tete beat Russian Mikhail Aloyan by unanimous decision.
The two other boxers in the semis are Japan’s Naoya Inoue, who had an eye-catching first round KO win over Dominican Juan Carlos Payano, and Puerto Rican Emmanuel Rodriguez, who beat Australian Jason Moloney by split decision.
Rodriguez holds the IBF title while Inoue is the regular champion of the WBA. The finals is slated in the summer of 2019.
Saludar is now in a very exciting division. He could target the Super Series winner, or if there are title belts that could get vacated along the way, he could position himself for another title shot if he can get highly ranked. But first, he needs to get comfortable with his weight and prove himself against tougher foes in the 118 lb. category.
Recent PhilBoxing articles:
Snips and Snipes 18 April 2019: Anthony Joshua's US debut hits a snag
By Eric Armit, Fri, 19 Apr 2019DANNY GARCIA VS. ADRIAN GRANADOS INTERNATIONAL MEDIA CONFERENCE CALL TRANSCRIPT
By , Fri, 19 Apr 2019“FIGHT NIGHT: SHIELDS vs. HAMMER” CAPTURES THE DRAMA SURROUNDING HISTORIC UNDISUPUTED SHOWDOWN BETWEEN CLARESSA SHIELDS AND CHRISTINA HAMMER
By , Fri, 19 Apr 2019MAYWEATHER PROMOTIONS CONFIRMED FOR 5TH ANNUAL BOX FAN EXPO
By , Fri, 19 Apr 2019World Ranked Filipino Joe "The Jaw Breaker" Noynay Lands in Japan for WBO Asia Pacific Rumble
By Carlos Costa, Thu, 18 Apr 2019Boxing Champ Claressa Shields Calls Out GGG, I Can Beat Men!
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019Final 16 Set In Vegas For The WPA Players Championship
By Ted Lerner, WPS Media Officer, Thu, 18 Apr 2019Marlon "Marvelous Captain" Manalo to play in the United States
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019PARTYPOKER TO SPONSOR US OPEN 9-BALL CHAMPIONSHIP
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019MANANQUIL DEFENDS WBO TITLE VS. KOBAYASHI
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019WBA #15 Heavyweight Ivan Dychko Ready and Willing to Settle Score with Anthony Joshua on June 1
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019SELINA BARRIOS vs. MELISSA HERNANDEZ APRIL 27 AT THE CAJUNDOME IN LOUISIANA
By , Thu, 18 Apr 201932 ADVANCE, 32 OUT AS DAY 1 OF THE WPA PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP IS COMPLETE
By Ted Lerner, WPS Media Officer, Thu, 18 Apr 2019Presser Notes & Quotes: Terence Crawford and Amir Khan Ready for PPV Showdown
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019RIGHT HAND INJURY FORCES DAVID LEMIEUX TO WITHDRAW FROM SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT DEBUT AGAINST JOHN 'THE GORILLA' RYDER
By , Thu, 18 Apr 2019
