Good Prospects at Minimumweight, Light Fly, Super Bantam and Super Feather in 2025
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 23 Nov 2024
Current Pinoy world champions Jerusalem (L) and Taduran (R).
Prospects are good for Filipino fighters in the minimumweight, light flyweight, super bantamweight and the super featherweight divisions in 2025 given the proper push or breaks.
As a welcome change, the year 2024 will end with the Philippines having two world champions in boxing's lightest weight class, the minimumweights courtesy of ex WBO titlist now WBC belt holder Melvin Jerusalem and now two time IBF champion Pedro Taduran.
Philippine boxing hit the bottom in 2023 with the year ending without a world champion. Long time IBF super flyweight titlist Jerwin Ancajas and WBA and IBF unified super bantamweight chanpion Marlon Tapales were deposed. Mark Magsayo failed to win back the WBC featherweight crown versus Brandon Figueroa. Regie Suganob failed in his world light flyweight title try in South Africa
It was quite poetic then that we started the new year from the bottom of boxing's divisional hierarchy when Jerusalem won the WBO minimumweight belt in Japan in January 2024. But Melvin soon surrendered the crown on his stool versus Puerto Rican Oscar Collazo a few months later and the country was back to zero.
We had our chances afterwards with Dave Apolinario and Vincent Astrolabio and Ancajas getting cracks respectively at flyweight and bantamweight but all ending in disasters.
Then Jerusalem and Taduran virtually saved the year by re-winning world minimumweight crowns against the highly favored Japanese defending champion brothers Yudai and Ginjiro Shigeoka no less in Japan.
Jerusalem finally broke his first title defense jinx by successfully defending his WBC crown against Mexican mandatory Luis Castillo last October in Mandaluyong City. Taduran's own maiden defense against a Chinese challenger set in South Korea for late November fell through for lack of sponsors.
What's in store for us in 2025?
With Jerusalem and Taduran remaining as WBC and IBF champions, we expect to be in the crosshairs of the handlers of new unified WBA and WBO champion Oscar Collazo and cash rich Japanese promoters especially of the Shigeokas.
If Collazo manages to entice Jerusalem into a rematch cum unification, we can expect Yudai to go after Taduran to avenge Ginjiro's gory TKO title losing defeat.
However, it will be our turn to hunt for world titles at 108, 122 and 130 lbs divisions where he have many rated fighters.
Christian Araneta is our mandatory challenger for the IBF light flyweight title now held by Japan's Masimichi Yabuki, TKO winner over ex titlist Sivenathi Nontsinga of South Africa.
However with the WBC and WBA titles vacant following the departure of erstwhile once defeated champion Kenshiro Teraji, now WBC flyweight titlist there's a lot to go around for #2 Arvin John Paciones, #5 Regie Suganob and #6 Jayson Vayson even for the lower rated Miel Fajardo. The WBO belt holder Shochiki Iwata is also beatable, I think.
The watch will be on once undisputed world super bantamweight kingpin Naoya Inoue keeps his titles on Christmas Eve against Australia's Sam Goodman. There is a chance the Japanese Monster will move up to the featherweight especially if his former victim Stephen Fulton wins over Brandon Figueroa for the WBC featherweight title which has been upgraded from interim to regular with Rey Vargas on medical leave.
Meeting and beating Fulton with the WBC 126 lbs belt will be enough incentive for Naoya to move up and vacate most if not all his belts at 122 lbs.
In that eventuality, we have ex champion Tapales, WBO #2 rated Carl Jammes Martin, top 5 rated Jayr Raquinel and even perhaps self "retired" Johnriel Casimero in the mix to compete with other rated foreign contenders. The fighter to watch out for however will be WBC bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani. And perhaps WBO bantam titlist Yoshiki Takei.
Funally, we have two highly rated fighters at super
featherweight namely former WBC featherweight titlist Mark Magsayo and former Olympian and bemedaled amateur Charley Suarez. Both are ready for a title crack against any of the current champions namely Emanuel Navarette, O'Shaquie Foster, Lamont Roach and especially Anthony Cacece.
Let's hope for the best in the coming new year 2025.
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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