Coming off two straight losses last year, which ultimately had him relinquishing his IBF junior bantamweight crown, Jerwin Ancajas made his triumphant ring return on Sunday at the Minneapolis Armory in Minnesota. Debuting as a super bantamweight, the Filipino pug knocked out Colombian adversary Wilner Soto in the fifth round after unleashing a series of vicious body blows. Ancajas improved his record to 34 wins (23 by KO) and 3 defeats.
Ancajas looked like the superior fighter all throughout the 122-pound showdown. His footwork was excellent, and his punches appeared heavy at the higher weight class. The 31-year-old pride of Panabo, Davao Del Norte impressed pundits and fans alike. After the match, they couldn’t help but express their excitement for a potential title fight between Jerwin and WBA bantamweight champion Takuma Inoue.
Veteran journalist Quinito Henson fanboy'd over Ancajas while also hyping up a collision with the Japanese boxer.
"Jerwin looks good in his superbantam debut but will scale down to challenge WBA bantam champ Takuma Inoue next," The Dean tweeted.
Filipino Emmy-winning producer Steve Angeles was glad to see his countryman’s return to top form, and can’t seem to wait what Jerwin does next.
“Bigger tatted up Jerwin put on a good show today. Excited to see what he can do moving forward,” Angeles posted.
@ajoaquinarieta and @BoxingCasualFan are already anticipating an encounter between Ancajas and Inoue.
That Japanese surname sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Of course, Takuma is the younger brother of the pound-for-pound stalwart Naoya “The Monster” Inoue. While they share the same warrior’s blood, Takuma isn’t a knockout artist like his big bro. At the moment, the younger Inoue’s record stands at 18 wins (4 by KO) and 1 loss. Nonetheless, a style clash between Ancajas and Takuma is expected to end up as a thriller.
(GM)