London Olympian Mark Anthony Barriga moves a step closer to a world title shot tonight when he battles Colombian Gabriel Mendoza in an International Boxing Federation minimum weight title eliminator at the Skydome of SM North Edsa.
During yesterday?s official weigh-in at the TV5 headquarters, Barriga tipped in at the division limit of 105 lbs while Mendoza came in at 104.
Joven Sports, in partnership with TV5 and Sean Gibbons? Knucklehead Boxing Club, is staging the slugfest that will also feature the return of former world champion Marvin Sonsona, AJ Banal and Genesis Servania.
Barriga, 24, has an 8-0 win-loss record with one KO while Mendoza, 38, has a 29-5-2 slate with 23 KOs.
A win over Mendoza, who fought almost exclusively in Colombia, will catapult Barriga to a crack at the IBF crown against the winner of the May 20 match between Japanese champ Hiroto Kyoguchi and Filipino challenger Vince Paras.
Meanwhile, world champion Jerwin Ancajas doesn?t have the nerve to unfriend or block mandatory challenger Jonas Sultan on social media.
But the reigning International Boxing Federation super-flyweight king swears it will be different when they meet on May 26 at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.
Facebook friends the past couple of years, Ancajas (29-1 with 20 KOs) and Sultan (14-3 with nine KOs) have a history of exchanging messages whenever one has a fight on schedule.
It?s unlikely Ancajas would be sending Sultan any ?Good Luck? message on social media this time.
