Unbeaten Thai to defend crown in USA this April
LOS Angeles (AFP) - Thailand’s undefeated Chayaphon Moonsri will fight outside his homeland for the first time next month, defending his World Boxing Council minimumweight world title at Indio, California, promoters said Thursday.
Chayaphon, 54-0 with 18 knockouts, will face 20-year-old Filipino southpaw Marco Rementizo, 12-3 with nine knockouts, in a 12-round mini-flyweight (105 pounds) matchup on April 25 at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino.
Chayaphon, also known as Wanheng Menayothin, is the longestreigning active world champion, having taken his crown from Mexico’s Oswaldo Novoa with a ninth-round stoppage in November 2014.
Since then, the 34-yearold Thai fighter has won 18 consecutive bouts, defending the crown in 12 of them. His most recent triumph was a 12-round unanimous decision over South Africa’s Simphiwe Knonco in a title defense last October.
The fight is among four world title bouts on the undercard of a 12-round cruiserweight fight between Russian former light-heavyweight world champion Sergey Kovalev, 34-3 with one drawn and 29 knockouts, and Cuban former world title challenger Sullivan Barrera, 22-3 with 14 knockouts.
Nicaraguan twin brothers Felix and Rene Alvarado, both 31, will each defend a world title on the card.
Felix, 35-2 with 30 knockouts, will make the second defense of his International Boxing Federation light flyweight world title against South Africa’s DeeJay Kriel, 16-1-1 with eight knockouts.
Felix Alvarado won
the vacant crown with a seventh-round stoppage of Filipino Randy Petalcorin in 2018 and defended for the first time last May with a unanimous decision over Japan’s Reiya Konishi.
Former IBF minimumweight champion Kriel, 24, has won eight fights in a row, most recently knocking out Mexico’s Jesus Aguirre last November.
Rene Alvarado, 32-8 with 21 knockouts, defends his World Boxing Association super featherweight title against Venezuela’s Roger Gutierrez, 24-3 with one drawn and 20 knockouts.
Brazil’s Patrick Teixeira, 31-1 with 22 knockouts, makes the first defense of his World Boxing Organization light middleweight crown against Argentina’s Brian Castano, 16-0 with one drawn and 12 knockouts. AFP