SPORTSCLOPEDIA 28: VINCENT ASTROLABIO CLASHES WITH EMMANUEL RODRIGUEZ FOR THE IBF BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 05 Feb 2023
International Boxing Federation (IBF) top bantamweight contender Vincent “Asero” Astrolabio earns a shot for the vacant IBF world bantamweight title against Emmanuel Rodriguez of Puerto Rico.
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The IBF title is one of the four world title belts vacated by the undisputed Japanese boxing sensation Naoya “Monster” Inoue who moves up to the next higher super bantamweight division.
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The IBF has announced this week that their respective camps will have until February 25 to reach a deal and avoid a purse bid hearing. Astrolabio is promoted by Manny Pacquiao's MP Promotions and Rodriguez by Juan Orengo’s Fresh Productions based out of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
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The matchup is interesting because Astrolabio and Rodriguez won their respective semifinal bouts in an IBF box-off. The sanctioning body ordered two separate eliminators when Inoue (24-0, 21KOs) was slated to face Englishman Paul Butler for the undisputed bantamweight championship.
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Inoue grabbed Butler’s WBO title and successfully defended his WBC, WBA and IBF titles with an eleventh-round knockout on December 13 in Tokyo, Japan. The undefeated three-division champion thus became the first Asian boxer to become undisputed champion during the three or four-belt time, his main goal for staying at the bantamweight.
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Astrolabio (18-3, 13KOs) of General Santos City, now based in Las Vegas, is on a six-fight winning streak, with an amazing 2022 boxing year that started with an upset victory over former world junior featherweight titlist Guillermo Rigondeaux last February 26, 2022 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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The win was followed by a sixth-round knockout of Russia’s Nikolai Potapov last December 17, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada which elevated Astrolabio to the number-one contender rank in the IBF bantamweight division.
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The bout was one of two semifinal eliminator matches mandated by the IBF. This occurred after Rodriguez (21-2, 13KOs; 1NC) got the number-two contender rank after beating previously undefeated Gary Antonio Russell via technical decision during their October 15, 2022 rematch in Brooklyn, New York.
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The 30-year-old Rodriguez of Manatí, Puerto Rico previously wore the IBF title belt, which he won over Butler. He had a successful defense, winning a split decision over Australia’s Jason Moloney in their October 20, 2018 World Boxing Super Series (WBSS) tournament quarter-final. Rodriguez advanced to the WBSS semifinal round then suffered a second-round knockout loss to Inoue in their May 18, 2019 encounter in Glasgow, Scotland.
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Astrolabio won the WBO Oriental bantamweight, WBC international bantamweight, and the WBO Inter-continental bantamweight titles from 2019 to 2022. The six-fight winning streak enabled him to shoot up into the top rankings in the IBF bantamweight division.
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Astrolabio is rated No. 1 by the IBF, No. 2 by the WBO and No. 7 by the WBC. While Rodriguez is rated No. 2 by the IBF, No. 3 by the WBO and No. 5 by the WBC.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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