Another Filipino Bantamweight Bubble in the Offing?
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 18 Oct 2023
Ancajas (L) and Gaballo (R).
Another Filipino bubble in the now wide open bantamweight division may be in the offing as former interim WBA and WBC bantamweight titlist Reymart Gaballo emerged as one of the two leading ranked contenders to vie for the recently vacated IBF 118 lbs crown.
Puerto Rico's two time titlist Emmanuel Rodriguez recently announced his surprised retirement from boxing resulting to his just won IBF bantamweight title being left without a holder. Rodriguez won the title in August this year via 12 round decision over Melvin Lopez filling up the vacancy left by Naoya Inoue's move up to 122 lbs. early this year.
Rodriguez who first held the IBF belt in 2017 lost that crown to Inoue himself in 2018. Two years later, he fought Gaballo for the WBC interim title and lost by what he claimed as questionable decision.
Early this year, Rodriguez passed up a chance to fight Nonito Donaire for the vacant WBC title also left by Inoue and opted to fight for the vacant IBF version instead where he emerged victorious over Lopez. His decision to suddenly retire therefore came as surprise even to his team.
Gaballo, whose only defeat was to Donaire last year in a failed try to win the regular belt, by virtue of his past win over Rodriguez and being rated #3 by the IBF thus is favored to vie for the vacant title.
Ranked ahead of Gaballo is undefeated Japanese Ryusoke Nishida at #1 but the IBF is yet to officially announce if indeed these two top contenders will fight to fill the vacancy or name other rated challenger as opponent for Gaballo or Nishida with either as mandatory to the winner.
After experiencing a bubble between 2018 and 2022 through Donaire (WBA and WBC) and Johnriel Casimero (WBO), the Philippines is currently without world bantamweight champion with Donaire losing twice to Inoue and Casimero getting stripped.
But that could change in the coming months as former IBF super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas challenges Inoue's brother Takuma for his current WBA bantamweight title this November 15, 2023 in Japan.
For all we know, Gaballo may be fighting for the vacant IBF crown this December.
With both hopefully winning, that would be enough to erase the unfortunate recent title vacancy losses of Donaire and Vincent Astrolabio.
And lead us to another bubble era at bantamweight.
Sana nga.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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