28 fights. 28 wins. And still no world title shot.
Tonight in Riyadh, the Philippines' Carl Jammes "Wonder Boy" Martin (28-0, 21 KOs) steps up to featherweight to face Mexico's David "El Rey" Picasso (33-1-1, 18 KOs) for Picasso's WBC Silver belt, on the Canelo v Mbilli card.
Why move up ?
Martin is ranked No. 1 by the WBO at super bantamweight. He says he simply couldn't find anyone at 122 willing to get in there with him.
We'll leave you to draw your own conclusions !
So he went looking for trouble — and found it.
Picasso is no stepping stone. His only loss came against Naoya Inoue last December, and he went the full 12 with the Monster. He also stands around six inches taller than the Ifugao southpaw.
"Moving up in weight is a big risk, but I see more upside in taking this fight," Martin said.
Weights right ! Martin 126 lb, Picasso 125.8 lb.
And here's the chess board. Win tonight, and Wonder Boy says he wants to head back down to 122 — where Inoue rules every belt.
That could make things very interesting.
📅 Saturday 31 October (main card from midnight Vietnam time)
📍 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
🥊 10 Rounds | Featherweight | WBC Silver
📺 DAZN
Hungry dogs fight harder.
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)
