On September 28th at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, Jerwin Ancajas (30-1-1, 20 KOs) will defend his IBF World Super Flyweight Title against young Mexican challenger Alejandro Santiago Barrios (16-2-4, 7 KOs).
Ancajas? coming out party was on the Manny Pacquiao vs Jeff Horn co-feature in July, 2017, stopping Teiru Kinoshita with a right hand to the body. He stole the show, as many fans were left disappointed with Pacquiao?s performance as well as the judges? scorecards. Two judges scored the bout 115-113 for Horn, while one judge had it 117-111 in favor of Horn. Despite the unsatisfactory main event, Ancajas proved that he is the real deal.
Ancajas,26, has won all of his title defenses decisively, and looks to continue his solid form against Santiago, who many expect the champion to handle rather easily.
This will be the second time Santiago has boxed in the United States, but first time the Mexican challenger has ever fought on the world stage. His last fight ended in a draw versus Puerto Rican Jose Martinez (20-0-2, 13 Kos) for the NABO Super Flyweight title. That fight was a rematch of their first bout, which also ended in a draw.
Santiago, rated no.14 by the IBF, and co-promoted by legendary Don ?War-a-Week? Chargin and Paco Damian of Paco Presents Boxing, will be the clear underdog when he steps in the ring on September 28th, while Ancajas looks to impress in front of a large Filipino contingent in Oakland.
The super flyweight division is loaded with talented fighters such as Khalid Yafai, Donnie Nietes, Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, Roman Gonzalez, and Juan Francisco Estrada.
Boxing fans are chomping at the bit, hoping to see Ancajas fight on the next ?Superfly? installment. ?Superfly 3? featured talented fighters, but lacked the necessary star power. Ancajas can fill that void, and there are plenty of great fighters for him to face within the division.
He has a bright future ahead of him, but he must get past Santiago.
