PEDRO Taduran puts his IBF mini-flyweight title on the line to spearhead a fight card that serves as prelude to the 50th anniversary celebration of the 'Thrilla in Manila.'
The champion faces undefeated No. 1 contender and compatriot Christian Balunan in a 12-round clash at the San Andres Sports Complex on Oct. 26.
Taduran, 28, is fresh off a successful title retention bid last May when he scored a split decision against former champion Ginjiro Shigeoka of Japan.
Shigeoka, who collapsed after the fight, underwent emergency brain surgery shortly after. He remains in coma until this day, but is no longer under life-threatening condition.
The win raised Taduran’s record to 18-4-1 with 13 KOs.
But expect fireworks when the 28-year-old southpaw defends his title against the hard-hitting Balunan, who is undefeated in 12-0 fights, all but five of them coming by way of stoppages.
Thrilla in Manila, again
Meanwhile, part of the undercard is the IBF Pan Pacific bantamweight title bout between Rex Tso and Sagar Chouhan, along with another all-Filipino slugfest between Miel Fajardo and Esneth Domingo for the IBF Pan Pacific flyweight championship.
The Taduran title defense leads to the countdown of the golden anniversary of the iconic 'Thrilla in Manila' which the country hosted in Oct. 1, 1975, pitting heavyweight greats Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier against each other.
Headlining the celebration is Melvin Jerusalem’s WBC minimumweight title match against Siyakholwa Kuse of South Africa at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
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