Gesta gets chance to break win drought in top event
US-BASED Cebuano Mercito Gesta sees action in Southern California in Golden Boy Promotions’ first boxing show since the resurgence of boxing following a lull due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Gesta, a native of Mandaue City, locks horns with unbeaten 23-year-old prospect Hector Tanajara in a 10-round World Boxing Council (WBC) USNBC lightweight title fight on July 24, 2020 at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California.
The Gesta vs. Tanajara bout will be the co-main event of Vergil Ortiz Jr.’s title defense of his World Boxing Association (WBA) Gold welterweight strap against Samuel Vargas. The show will be streamed live on DAZN.
The 32-year-old Gesta is on a rough patch in his career right now, winning just one of his last four contests in the last two years. His last win was back in 2018 with a majority decision over veteran
Robert Manzanarez.
Last year, Gesta suffered a ninth round knockout upset in the hands of little-known Juan Antonio Rodriguez on March 21, 2019. He then settled to a technical draw with Carlos Morales on Nov. 14, 2019.
Tanajara is stepping up in competition against Gesta. He had three fights in 2019 with decision wins over Ivan Delgado, Ezequiel Aviles and Juan Carlos Burgos.
Gesta, a two-time world title challenger, is 32-3-3 with 17 knockouts, while Tanajara is 19-0 with five knockouts. /