Barriga outclasses Colombian foe, gains shot at world title

Mark Anthony Barriga moved his head and feet, unloaded combinations and forced Gabriel Mendoza to throw wild punches in the air from the opening bell.

Barriga ran circles around Mendoza, frustrating the Colombian to score a shutout in their 12-round bout on Sunday night at Skydome in SM North Edsa.

Two judges had it, 120-108, while the other scored it, 119-109, giving only one round to the 38-year-old Mendoza, who lost a world title fight just last year in Mexico.

In a fight pitting youth against experience, it was the the 24-year-old Barriga, who took the seasoned Mendoza (29-6, 23 KOs) to school with his technical precision and mastery of the ring from start to finish.

Barriga (9-0, 1 KO), who represented the Philippines in the 2012 London Olympics, became the mandatory challenger to the IBF minimumweight world title in just his 9th professional fight. 

The IBF crown is currently held by Japan’s Hiroto Kyoguchi, who is set to defend his belt against Filipino Vince Paras on Sunday in Tokyo, Japan.

In the co-featured bout, AJ Banal also picked up a one-sided win after dominating Master Suro of Indonesia.