Instead of facing former world champion Lee Haskins, brawler Kenny Demecillo will be in an all-Filipino International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight title eliminator bout against International Boxing Organization (IBO) bantamweight king Michael Dasmarinas on Nov. 24 in Gen. Santos City.

“I think he is a very strong and talented fighter. He’s a world champion and is very experienced,” the 26-year-old Demecillo told SunStar Cebu.

Haskins, according to Demecillo, pulled out of the fight because of an injury, which paved way to Dasmarinas stepping in as his replacement.

Haskins is ranked No. 4, Demecillo is rated No. 5 and Dasmarinas is ranked No. 6 in the IBF.

The 26-year-old Dasmarinas is on a roll, winning 10 of his last 11 fights. His most recent fight ended in a split draw with unbeaten Ghanaian Manyo Plange last Sept. 29 in Singapore. The fight before that, he scored a fourth round knockout over Karim Guerfi to win the IBO bantamweight strap.

“I’m still going to come in and bring the fight to him,” said Demecillo. “I’ll just have to watch out for his overhand and uppercut because those are his strong punches.”

The 26-year-old Demecillo is a winner of his last two contests. He is coming off a fifth round knockout over erstwhile unbeaten Russian prospect Vyacheslav Mirzaev last March 17 in Russia.

Demecillo has been training diligently at the Omega Boxing Gym for the biggest fight of his career, sparring with the likes of Joyjoy Formtentera and Mark Vicelles.

Demecillo is 14-4-2 with eight knockouts, while Dasmarinas is 28-2-1 with 19 knockouts.

The winner of the IBF eliminator between Demecillo and Dasmarinas becomes the mandatory challenger for the IBF bantamweight belt that’s currently around the waist of Emmanuel Rodriguez. (EKA)