FORMER interim World Boxing Council (WBC) bantamweight champion Reymart Gaballo will be back in action next month in Manila.
Gaballo will defend his World Boxing Organization Oriental (WBO) bantamweight belt against Thai veteran Phai Pharob on Feb. 13, 2024 at the Midas Midas Hotel and Casino in Parañaque City.
Gaballo is looking to continue his winning run and hopefully get a shot at a world title.
He’s currently the No. 1 ranked bantamweight by the WBO and the mandatory challenger of current WBO bantamweight titleholder Jason Moloney, who just recently successfully defended his belt against Saul Sanchez earlier this month.
Gaballo once held the interim WBC bantamweight strap after winning it by a split decision win over Emmanuel Rodriguez in 2020. He was looking to take the regular title but lost to thenWBC bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire Jr., who stopped him in four rounds in the US in 2021.
Gaballo fought sparingly in the next two years and scored a second round stoppage of Richard Sueno in 2022 before winning the WBO Oriental belt with a split decision over Michael Bravo last year.
The 27-year-old Gaballo is also ranked No. 5 by the International Boxing Federation (IBF).
Gaballo is now training under the tutelage of Donaire Jr.’s father Nonito Donaire Sr. at the Sanman Gym.
Pharob is a 40-year-old veteran with 38 fights under his belt in a 24-year pro career. He’s a former interim World Boxing Association (WBA) minimumweight champion after winning the belt by unanimous decision over Jesus Silvestre in 2011. He’s also a regional champion in the WBO, WBC and the Pan Asian Boxing Association (PABA) boxing bodies.
After a long layoff in 2016, he returned to the ring last year and went 3-2. His last fight was a first round technical knockout of Akkhaphon Ngamkaeo.
Gaballo is 26-1 with 21 knockouts, while Pharob is 35-3 with 27 knockouts.