BEFORE the year ends, two Filipinos will face each other in a world championship fight.
Former stablemates Vic Saludar and Robert Paradero are set to face off for the vacant World Boxing Association (WBA) minimumweight belt on Dec. 3 at the Elorde Sports Center in Parañaque City.
According to a report by Philboxing.com, the event will be promoted by Elorde Boxing Productions of Gabriel “Bebot” Elorde Jr. and will be following strict health protocols in a closed-doors event.
The 29-year-old Saludar is the former World Boxing Organization (WBO) minimumweight champion after winning the belt with a unanimous decision over Ryuya Yamanaka in 2018. He successfully defended it once with a unanimous decision over Masataka Taniguchi in early 2019 before losing it in his next fight to Wilfredo Mendez. He is coming off a sixth round knockout win over Mike Kinaadman in a keep-busy fight in Naga City, Cebu last Dec. 21, 2019.
Saludar is rated No. 2 in the WBO and No. 4 in the WBA.
Meanwhile, Paradero has been hovering in the top 10 of the minimumweight division for some time now. The 24-year-old former WBO Asia-Pacific Youth minimumweight champion has not fought for one year and five months. He last saw action on April 5, 2019 with an easy first round knockout of World Boxing Council (WBC) No. 38 ranked Jonathan Almacen.
Paradero is ranked No. 5 in the WBA, No. 6 in the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and No. 25 in the WBC.
Saludar is 20-4 with 11 knockouts, while Paradero is 18-0 with 12 knockouts.
Two Filipinos fighting each other for a world championship isn’t a rare sight anymore. In the past three years, there have been three all-Filipino world championship fights. IBF super flyweight king Jerwin Ancajas and challenger Jonas Sultan broke the 93-year lull with an all-Filipino championship bout in Fresno, California on May 26, 2018. A few months later, Donnie Nietes and Aston Palicte fought for the WBO super flyweight title in Los Angeles. The following year, Pedro Taduran traded leathers with Samuel Salva for the vacant IBF minimumweight strap. (EKA)