Marlon Tapales stakes WBC Asia belt vs Indian foe in Cambodia

FILE–The Philippines’ WBA and IBF super bantamweight champion Marlon Tapales (C) poses as he passes the official weigh-in at a hotel in Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture on December 25, 2023, ahead of his title match against Japan’s WBC and WBO super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena on December 26. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP)

MANILA, Philippines–Former unified world super bantamweight king Marlon Tapales and his Indian foe conquered the scales Friday a day before their scheduled showdown on Saturday at Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Tapales stepped in at 121.7 pounds while Saurabh Kumar tipped in at 120.6 lbs with the Filipino southpaw’s World Boxing Council (WBC) Asia crown on the line.

“This is a major step towards another shot at the world title for Marlon,” JC Mananquil, the fighter’s promoter said from the Cambodian capital after the official weigh-in on Friday.

READ: Inoue knocks out Marlon Tapales, becomes undisputed champion anew

Tapales is rated highly by the four sanctioning bodies and is in prime position to contest for a vacant world title once Naoya Inoue relinquishes all four belts to invade the featherweight ranks.

The 32-year-old Tapales lost the WBA and IBF belts to Inoue in December of last year. He returned to the ring last May and stopped Thailand’s Nattapong Jankaew in the first round in Manila.

Tapales and his team arrived in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.