BoxRec

Press Release

Jerwin Ancajas (33-1-2, 22 KOs), from Panabo City, Philippines, and Kazuto Ioka (27-2, 15 KOs), from Tokyo, Japan, will put up their dukes and their respective IBF and WBO junior bantamweight world titles, when they collide in a world title unification battle on Saturday, December 31, at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo.

Promoted by Shisei Boxing Gym, Manny Pacquiao’s MP Promotions, TGB Promotions, and Knucklehead Boxing Promotions, Ancajas vs. Ioka – the New Year’s Eve test to be the best of the 115-pound division -- will be the latest chapter in the storied Philippines-Japan boxing rivalry.

The two warriors boast a combined record of 60-3-2 (37 KOs) – a sterling winning percentage of 92% with victory by knockout ratio of 62%.

This will be the 10th title defense for Ancajas, who has reigned as IBF junior bantamweight champion since 2016. The ultimate road warrior, fighting in his opponents’ backyard is nothing new for Ancajas who has made title defenses in Macau, Brisbane, Belfast, Mexico, the Philippines, and throughout the U.S. He will have his hands full against Ioka, a four-division world champion who has held world titles in minimum weight, junior flyweight, flyweight, and junior bantamweight divisions dating back to 2011.

“This is my Dream Fight! I have waited six years for a signature fight to prove to everyone in boxing that I am one of the best 115 pounders in the world,” Ancajas said. “I have been to Japan, sparring in the past, and love the people of Japan and the boxing fans are some of the best in the world. They respect all fighters and root for the best man to win.”

“I have been working with Jerwin since he was ten years old. I am very excited that finally the fight is happening,” said Joven Jimenez, Ancajas’ manager and trainer. “My goal, since Jerwin won the IBF World title in 2016, was to get him a major title unification fight. We have worked so hard for this moment, and we will not be denied.”

“We are very happy that Jerwin Ancajas, one of our first world champions, is getting this tremendous opportunity to unify his IBF title with the WBO title,” said Sean Gibbons, president of MP Promotions. “Jerwin has waited a long time for this type of fight and come December 31, he will ring in the new year as the NEW IBF and WBO Junior Bantamweight World Champion!”

noice!

Press Release

Jerwin Ancajas (33-1-2, 22 KOs), from Panabo City, Philippines, and Kazuto Ioka (27-2, 15 KOs), from Tokyo, Japan, will put up their dukes and their respective IBF and WBO junior bantamweight world titles, when they collide in a world title unification battle on Saturday, December 31, at the Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo.

Promoted by Shisei Boxing Gym, Manny Pacquiao’s MP Promotions, TGB Promotions, and Knucklehead Boxing Promotions, Ancajas vs. Ioka – the New Year’s Eve test to be the best of the 115-pound division -- will be the latest chapter in the storied Philippines-Japan boxing rivalry.

The two warriors boast a combined record of 60-3-2 (37 KOs) – a sterling winning percentage of 92% with victory by knockout ratio of 62%.

This will be the 10th title defense for Ancajas, who has reigned as IBF junior bantamweight champion since 2016. The ultimate road warrior, fighting in his opponents’ backyard is nothing new for Ancajas who has made title defenses in Macau, Brisbane, Belfast, Mexico, the Philippines, and throughout the U.S. He will have his hands full against Ioka, a four-division world champion who has held world titles in minimum weight, junior flyweight, flyweight, and junior bantamweight divisions dating back to 2011.

“This is my Dream Fight! I have waited six years for a signature fight to prove to everyone in boxing that I am one of the best 115 pounders in the world,” Ancajas said. “I have been to Japan, sparring in the past, and love the people of Japan and the boxing fans are some of the best in the world. They respect all fighters and root for the best man to win.”

“I have been working with Jerwin since he was ten years old. I am very excited that finally the fight is happening,” said Joven Jimenez, Ancajas’ manager and trainer. “My goal, since Jerwin won the IBF World title in 2016, was to get him a major title unification fight. We have worked so hard for this moment, and we will not be denied.”

“We are very happy that Jerwin Ancajas, one of our first world champions, is getting this tremendous opportunity to unify his IBF title with the WBO title,” said Sean Gibbons, president of MP Promotions. “Jerwin has waited a long time for this type of fight and come December 31, he will ring in the new year as the NEW IBF and WBO Junior Bantamweight World Champion!”

Great news.

How do I go about watching this?

bobcatbox wrote: ↑25 Nov 2021, 12:22 How do I go about watching this?

It says TGB promotions on the poster, but I doubt FOX or Showtime will broadcast it.

I have a feeling ESPN+ will probably pick it up.

No news yet.

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑25 Nov 2021, 12:28

bobcatbox wrote: ↑25 Nov 2021, 12:22 How do I go about watching this?

It says TGB promotions on the poster, but I doubt FOX or Showtime will broadcast it.

I have a feeling ESPN+ will probably pick it up.

No news yet.

Cool, thank you.

GGG and Ancajas title bouts in jeopardy as Japan closes borders due to Omicron variant

Japan has announced on Monday that they will be closing their borders and suspending entry of foreign visitors due to the threat of the new coronavirus variant Omicron. Although it’s still yet to be determined by scientists if it’s a bigger threat than Delta, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called the move an “emergency precaution to prevent a worst-case scenario” in the country.

Japan just recently eased their restrictions for foreign students and workers, but will now be going back to more strict travel guidelines once again.

While the WHO warned that fully understanding the new variant’s level of severity could take weeks, they still deemed that “the overall global risk related to the new variant of concern Omicron is assessed as very high.”

The Japanese Prime Minister did not say how long these restrictions would stay, but should it remain for the next few weeks as expected, some big combat sports events in Japan would be affected.

Gennady Golovkin is scheduled for a middleweight title unification bout against Ryota Murata on December 29, while Filipino IBF junior bantamweight champion Jerwin Ancajas is booked to take on Japan’s Kazuto Ioka on December 31. Current rules don’t allow Golovkin and Ancajas to enter the country, putting the two events in jeopardy.

On the Japanese MMA side of things, there’s an annual tradition of hosting a massive event on New Year’s Eve, and current restrictions would mean that Rizin can’t involve their top stars from other countries. If it stands, they will again have to settle on featuring only locally based fighters, much like what they did in 2020 when the pandemic started.

Israel also took a similarly strong stance as Japan, while several other countries are also tightening up their border restrictions a bit due to the growing number of cases of the Omicron variant. This includes the US, which reportedly plans to ban travel from South Africa and several other countries in the region.

Should more countries follow suit, several combat sports, and sporting events and athletes in general, could be affected as well.

Has this been postponed?