
Papua New Guinea will take its boxing talent on the road this April, with four highly promising athletes travelling to Ho Chi Minh City for an international professional boxing event.
Leading the group is Junior Kauko Raka (seated), widely regarded as Papua New Guinea’s most recognised professional boxer.
Raka says the team is pumped about the opportunity, and confident they can deliver killer performances.
“We know that Vietnamese fighters compete with great spirit,” Raka said.
“I’ve been there before — they got skills and they’re tough brother.
“But I have warning for them.
“My team has been working extra hard, and we’re coming to give everything we’ve got.
We want to show that Papua New Guinea can mix it with the big boys. We're on the world stage now.
“We are real dogs brother. All bite - no quit.
“So please tell Vietnam they better be ready — we ain’t playing.
“We going to shock a lot of people this April.
TRIGGER PROMOTION 7 will be held in Thao Dien HCMC on Sunday April 19th.
The event will be televised and live streamed with an expected international audience of more than 2 million people.
* pictured: boxers Tau Bowen, Magdalyn Menjawi, Fidelis Laia, Junior Raka (seated), with trainer Nelson John (far right)

























Bacolod's Genesis Servania will fight China's rising star Aketelieti Yelejian for the WBO Asia Lightweight title this November.
The highly-anticipated match up will take place on the undercard of the IBF world title fight between Pedro Taduran and Zhu DianXing at Jeju Island, South Korea.
Aketelieti Yelejian, who suffered a narrow loss to the Prince Albert Pagara in June, rebounded with an impressive IBF Asia victory against Korean Jin Su Kim in Vietnam recently. He is a very rangy and deceptive boxer known for his relaxed combinations, and he's supremely confident in his ability to take down Servania and claim the title.
"I've studied Servania's style, and I know I have the skills to outmaneuver him," Yelejian said yesterday.
"I'm excited to represent China on the international stage once more, and bring home an impressive win against a top and proven boxer like Genesis."
Servania, a seasoned veteran with a 35-4 record, boasts a reputation for toughness that has come from battles at the top level. And has still possesses some of the best body shots in the sport of boxing.
This important title shot gives the filipino the opportunity to re-establish himself on the world scene once more, and it's best remembered that his only defeats have came against world-ranked champions like Oscar Valdez and Andres Cortes.
But the China team have already confidently stated that Yelejian's youth, speed, height, and reach may all prove too much for the Filipino boxer.
Their optimism also exudes for the world title bout, where surprisingly, they are quite dismissive of Pedro Taduran's hopes of beating star Zhu DianXing. They actually rate their boxer so highly, they have predicted that the champion has no chance of retaining the belt.
These claims set up an intriguing backdrop for two massive Philippines v China feature bouts.
Fight Details :
- Date: Saturday, November 23rd
- Location: Jeju Island, South Korea
- Title: WBO Asia Lightweight
- Contenders: Aketelieti Yelejian (China) vs. Genesis Servania (Philippines)
























