Jerwin Ancajas. Roy Luarca/INQUIRER
Without looking past his smaller, lightly regarded foe, Filipino boxing champ Jerwin Ancajas resumes his hunt for the big-ticket fights that would put him in the sport’s biggest stage.
The reigning IBF junior bantamweight champion tipped the scales at 114.2 lb, while Mexican Alejandro Santiago Barrios officially weighed 114.6 Thursday ahead of their 12-round championship fight.
They clash at Oracle Arena in San Francisco Friday night (Saturday morning in Manila) for Ancajas’ sixth title defense of the crown he has been wearing the past two years.
Barrios, who stands 5-foot-2, is touted to be a hungry challenger raring to prove his worth after winning 11 straight fights against fringe fighters.
That could prove thorny for the 26-year-old Ancajas, who is looking to become the next Filipino ring sensation after boxing great Manny Pacquiao, who now co-promotes his fights.
Ancajas is reportedly being dangled an explosive encounter against Thai Srisaket Sor Rungvisai who shot to stardom after knocking out Nicaraguan legend Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzales.
A fight between sensational fighters like Rungvisai and Ancajas could draw in the crowd and views and position them as boxing’s emerging superstars.
“We saw Barrios fight and he’s a veteran fighter, he can fight outside and bring the action in,” said Ancajas’ manager and trainer Joven Jimenez. “But we came here very prepared and Jerwin is hoping to put up a big show.”
That’s the main goal of Ancajas, who is coming from a lackluster decision win against compatriot Jonas Sultan in May, where the champ appeared to be holding his punches in the first all-Filipino world title fight in decades.
Ancajas’ camp is set to stay in the United States to wait for the outcome of Rungvisa’s fight against Iran Diaz of Mexico next month, hoping to finally seal a deal.