ROLI Gasca once again assumes his underdog status as he travels to unknown territory to gain prominence worldwide.
Gasca is gunning for the vacant International Boxing Organization (IBO) super bantamweight belt against unbeaten Russian veteran Alexander Bakhtin on Sept. 18 at the Varshavka Sky Business Center in Moscow.
?It is (a gamble) but we think that Roli needs a breakout fight to bring back his career,? said ALA Promotions president Michael Aldeguer.
Gasca isn?t a stranger to being an underdog. In fact, his underdog role helped him make a name in the Asian boxing scene. In 2010, he traveled to Thailand as a huge underdog against world-rated Tabtimdaeng Na Rachawat. However, he shocked the hometown crowd with a sixth-round technical knockout over the then- Pan Asian Boxing Association bantamweight titleholder.
The 23-year-old Cebuano, 19-2 with five knockouts,hopes to repeat that feat and shock the world by beating the 31-year-old Bakhtin, who is rated third in the World Boxing Council (WBC) and sixth in both the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and the World Boxing Association (WBA).
?Bakhtin is not a power puncher and if Roli follows the game plan, he can win. Hopefully he gets adjusted to the climate,? said Aldeguer.
Bakhtin is one of the best in the division with an impressive 29-0 with 11 knockouts.
He has beaten the likes of former world champion Nehomar Cermeno; and former world title contenders Pone Saengmorakot, Masaki Kawabata, Hidenobu Honda and Luis Melendez.
?(Our strategy is) to pressure and take the fight to him, take him out of his comfort zone,? said Aldeguer.
After losing his Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) super bantamweight crown to Yukinori Oguni by unanimous decision last year, Gasca has won two straight fights this year against local boxers Al Grumo and JR Mendoza, whom he both knocked out.
