Philippines, 25 Jun 2026
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


Five Boxers Advance on Day Five of 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup

PhilBoxing.com


COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (March 12, 2026) – Team USA earned five more wins on Thursday at the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup in Bangkok, Thailand. The United States saw four boxers advance to the quarterfinals, one boxer advance to the semifinals, and one boxer earn a bronze medal on day five of competition.

Earning the first win of the day was Brijhana Epperson (women’s 57 kg | Kansas City, Mo.), defeating China’s Mengxue Wu. Epperson dug deep late in the bout and overcame a 2-1 deficit heading into the final round. Epperson showed incredible resilience and dominated the third round 5-0 to secure the 3-2 victory. She now advances to the quarterfinals, where she will face France’s Shanon Cabane on Friday in Session 1, Ring A, Bout 3, at approximately 6:30 a.m. ET.

After Epperson, Christian Paez (men’s 55 kg | San Antonio, Texas) secured his third victory of the event after defeating Azerbaijan’s Nihat Gasimov by a 4-1 split decision. Paez won every judge’s vote in the first two rounds and will now advance to the quarterfinals, where he will face Spain’s Manuel Bueno on Friday in Session 1, Ring B, Bout 10, at approximately 2:15 a.m. ET.

Right after Paez, Asante Lamar (men’s 70 kg | Cincinnati, Ohio) stepped into the ring and dominated from start to finish before earning a unanimous decision victory over Japan’s Kenshiro Moko. Lamar won every judge’s vote in all three rounds and earned one 10-8 card in the second round. He will now square off with Kazakhstan’s Bibarys Ashirbay in the quarterfinals on Friday in Session 1, Ring A, Bout 11, at approximately 2:30 a.m. ET.

Making her international and tournament debut on day five was Marley McNealy (women’s 70kg | San Francisco, Calif.). The California native went down 5-0 after the first round against Uzbekistan’s Maftuna Yangieva but responded by winning the second round 3-2 to enter the final round down 2-0. McNealy carried the momentum into the final round, landing multiple right hooks on Yangieva and winning the round 4-1 to ultimately secure the bout via a 3-2 split decision. McNealy will now advance to the semifinals and is guaranteed a medal. She will face Kazakhstan’s Kamila Ospanova on Saturday, March 14.

Asaan Jenkins (men’s 65 kg | Washington, D.C.) earned Team USA’s final win of the day in his second appearance of the week. The Washington D.C. native earned his second unanimous decision victory, this time over Armenia’s Suren Katvalyan. Jenkins was down 3-2 after the first round but was lights out in the second and third rounds, winning every judge’s vote in the final six minutes, including a 10-8 in the third round after delivering two 8-counts to Katvalyan. Jenkins will now face Morocco’s Houssam Boucheta in Friday’s quarterfinals in Session 2, Ring B, Bout 10, at approximately 8:15 a.m. ET.

Team USA also had Ciana Nonhphala (women’s 48 kg | Providence, R.I.), Kaylee Aguilar (women’s 60 kg | Houston, Texas), Ruby Lopez (women’s 51 kg | Napa, Calif.), James Gentile (men’s 75 kg | Staten Island, N.Y.), Hadi Almashhadi (men’s 80 kg | Taylor, Mich.), and Caleb Reid (men’s 90+ kg | Palm Bay, Fla.) compete on Thursday; however their respective journeys 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup concluded following their defeats. Reid secured Team USA’s first medal of the tournament, a bronze medal, marking the first international medal of his young career.

Team USA will see six boxers in action Friday, including four winners from Thursday’s slate. Guadalupe Ruiz (women’s 54 kg | Anaheim, Calif.) will return to the ring and will face Egypt’s Hajer Wahba, and Team Captain Lauryn Elmore (women’s 65 kg | Sacramento, Calif.) will make her tournament debut against Kazakhstan’s Aisulu Mukhit.

The USA Boxing Youth High Performance Team is led by National Development Coach

Edward Fonteneaux (Fayetteville, N.C.). Fonteneaux will be assisted throughout the tournament by High Performance Pool coaches, including Holly Gregson (Idaho Falls, Idaho), Jason Hamilton (Spanaway, Wash.), Yessenia Montalvo (Bloomfield, N.J.), and Ronald Wright (Columbus, Ga.).

Additional tournament information for the 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup, including daily bout sheets, results, tournament updates, and more, will be uploaded to USA Boxing’s 2026 World Boxing Futures Cup event page.

Thursday, March 12 | Results:
Women’s 48 kg: Ciana Nonhphala vs. Gular Huseynova, AZE | L 3-0
Women’s 57 kg: Brijhana Epperson vs. Mengxue Wu, CHN | W 3-2
Women’s 60 kg: Kaylee Aguilar vs. Rushanabonu Isoeva, UZB | L 5-0
Men’s 55 kg: Christian Paez vs. Nihat Gasimov, AZE | W 4-1
Men’s 70 kg: Asante Lamar vs. Kenshiro Moko, JPN | W 5-0
Women’s 51 kg: Ruby Lopez vs. Chandrika Bhoreshi Pujari, IND | L 5-0
Women’s 75 kg: Marley McNealy vs. Maftuna Yangieva, UZB | W 3-2
Men’s 65 kg: Asaan Jenkins vs. Suren Katvalyan, ARM | W 5-0
Men’s 75 kg: James Gentile vs. Suhrob Rakhmatullaev, UZB | L 5-0
Men’s 80 kg: Hadi Almashhadi vs. Warren Tchoff, FRA | L 5-0
Men’s 90+ kg: Caleb Reid vs. Vladislav Samozhonov, KAZ | L (RSC-I)

Friday, March 13 | Schedule:
Women’s 54 kg: Guadalupe Ruiz vs. Hajer Wahba, EGY
Session 1 | Ring B | Bout 4 | Red Corner | Approximately 12:45 a.m. ET
Men’s 55 kg: Christian Paez vs. Manuel Bueno Jodar, ESP
Session 1 | Ring B | Bout 10 | Red Corner | Approximately 2:15 a.m. ET
Men’s 70 kg: Asante Lamar vs. Bibarys Ashirbay, KAZ
Session 1 | Ring A | Bout 11 | Red Corner | Approximately 2:30 a.m. ET
Women’s 57 kg: Brijhana Epperson vs. Shanon Cabane, FRA
Session 2 | Ring A | Bout 3 | Red Corner | Approximately 6:30 a.m. ET
Women’s 65 kg: Lauryn Elmore vs. Aisulu Mukhit, KAZ
Session 2 | Ring A | Bout 5 | Red Corner | Approximately 7:00 a.m. ET
Men’s 65 kg: Asaan Jenkins vs. Houssam Boucheta, MAR
Session 2 | Ring B | Bout 10 | Red Corner | Approximately 8:15 a.m. ET




Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • Round 12 with Mauricio Sulaimán: The Fathers in the boxing world
    By Mauricio Sulaimán, , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan arrive for Asia & Oceania Sambo Tournament
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • Mexican Hall of Fame Legend Carlos Zarate undergoes surgery in Mexico
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • IM Arca to see action in 28th Asian Youth Chess Championships 2026 in Shenzhen,China
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • Lenar Perez to Face Former Two-Time World Title Challenger Thabiso Mchunu, with Fendero-Fondjo as Co-Feature on September 3 in Montreal!
    , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • Gustavo Trujillo'S Remarkable Journey Continues as Reigning Bkb Heavyweight Champion Climbs the Pro Boxing Ranks
    , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • AMER ABDALLAH APPOINTED ADVISOR TO THE KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN BOXING FEDERATION
    , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • Youth Sports Sambo on June 25
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • Train for Puma Half Marathon in starts June 24
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 24 Jun 2026
  • THE PAST WEEK IN ACTION 22 JUNE 2026
    By Eric Armit, , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • Team PH reigns in Senior League Softball Asia-Pacific and Middle East Regional Tournament in Indonesia
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • ZAYAS AND BOOTS KICK-OFF FIGHT WEEK WITH STORMY FIRST FACE-OFF IN BROOKLYN
    , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • Santisima, Apolinar stop foes
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • BOOTS: I FEEL GREAT AT 154
    , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • Bohat is PBF Silver bantamweight champion
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • Mexican Boxing Olympic Team returns with bronze medal from Guiyang 2026
    , Tue, 23 Jun 2026
  • Lastimosa is PBF Youth light fly champ
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Mon, 22 Jun 2026
  • Undefeated Unified Champion Oscar “El Pupilo” Collazo Claims WBO International Flyweight Title, Stops Neider Valdez in Two Rounds
    , Sun, 21 Jun 2026
  • Pascuale Perez: Argentina's First World Champion
    By Ray Dunbar, , Sun, 21 Jun 2026
  • Round 12 with Mauricio Sulaimán: Mexico’s Greatness Takes Center Stage
    By Mauricio Sulaimán, , Sun, 21 Jun 2026
  • Boxing world shocked by Turki Alalshikh's health condition
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Sun, 21 Jun 2026
  • Rising Star H2O Sylve Shines in Long Beach, Defeats JoJo Diaz in MF Pro's Historic U.S. Debut on DAZN
    , Sun, 21 Jun 2026
  • Weigh-in Results: Collazo and Valdez On Weight for Flyweight Showdown in Oceanside
    By Dong Secuya, , Sat, 20 Jun 2026
  • “I feel Murat’s style is a perfect match for me.” Tony Yoka prepares for Murat Gassiev
    , Sat, 20 Jun 2026
  • Alex Eala continue her magical run by beating World No. 8 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Sat, 20 Jun 2026




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2026 philboxing.com.