Photo by Mark Giongco/INQUIRER.net
Before Sunday night in the 18th Gabriel “Flash” Elorde Boxing Awards, Jerwin Ancajas and Jonas Sultan had never met.
That, however, doesn’t mean Ancajas knows nothing about Sultan ahead of their title fight.
“We’ve been studying him. To me, he fights different styles in a fight. He had a different strategy against Casimero,” Ancajas told INQUIRER.net.
Ancajas described Sultan as an “unpredictable” fighter and it’s also the reason why he doesn’t want to be overly confident.
“We don’t want to be too confident against him because he fights different styles,” he said.
The 26-year-old Ancajas will defend his IBF super flyweight title for the fifth time against Sultan, who is a first-timer in a world title fight.
But Ancajas thinks Sultan’s inexperience fighting at the highest level is also what makes him a dangerous opponent.
“Sultan is hungry [to win his first world title] that’s why we can’t be complacent.”
Ancajas is coming off a 10th round stoppage of Israel Gonzalez of Mexico early last month in Texas while Sultan became the mandatory challenger after beating compatriot Johnriel Casimero by unanimous decision in a title eliminator six months ago in Cebu.
The all-Filipino world title fight—not seen since the great Pancho Villa beat Clever Sencio in 1925—was originally scheduled on April 14 in Las Vegas but was postponed after the event’s headliner Terence Crawford sustained a right hand injury during sparring.
According to Ancajas’ trainer Joven Jimenez, the bout between his prized ward and Sultan will be reset on either May 26 or June 2 and could take place in Las Vegas or California.
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