The too hard to tame, the very wild and unruly Jino Rodrigo, was left seething after the cancellation of his fight with Jhack "the Fat" Tepora. Rodrigo looked ripped and ready for a war with Tepora, only for the match to be lost on the scales.
The man known as the "Silent Beast" put in a great show when he visited Vietnam in early 2019, and has been keen to trade shots with a Vietnam fighter ever since.
Jino Rodrigo gets his new year's wish come true on March 5th, when he takes on the Hanoi hardman Nguyen Van Hai. The Viet is a legend in his country, and loves to fight. So much so, that he jumped at the opportunity to rise in weight class to tackle the bigger Rodrigo. And he is a Rodrigo fan! After seeing Jino fight in Vietnam, his comments were " Very good! Lots of action! I like!"
Jino Rodrigo looked awesome in recent sparring with Philippines #1 Joe Noynay, and that preparation is now in the bottle for March 5th. True to his name, we won't hear big words from Rodrigo, but you can be sure that the Silent Beast will uncork that bottle for the Vietnam fighter Nguyen Van Hai when he steps into the ring in Manila in 2022!
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)
