ARTHUR Villanueva, whose ring name “King Arthur” will try to relive United Kingdom’s famed legend, fights WBO world ranked number two bantamweight Zolane Tete of South Africa in Manchester, England on coming April 8.
The world title eliminator between Villanueva and Tete, which was initially scheduled this month, has finally found a suitable venue and schedule after a long wait.
Villanueva, who is the number one ranked WBO bantamweight in the world and also the reigning WBO Asia Pacific bantamweight champion, has been training since December at the ALA Boxing Gym in Cebu City. This will be his first time to fight in United Kingdom.
The victor in this world title eliminator fight will become the mandatory challenger of the winning boxer in the upcoming WBO world bantamweight championship bout between the defending champion Marlon “Nightmare” Tapales and Japanese Shohei Omori that will be held in Japan in April.
If Villanueva succeeds against Tete, this will be his second attempt to win a world title. His first try fell short when he lost via technical decision against McJoe Arroyo last 2015 in the United States for the vacant IBF world super flyweight title.
Villanueva bounced back by racking up three straight fights in the country. He currently has a record of 30 wins, 16 by knockouts, and a single loss. Tete, a two time world champion, has 24 wins, 20 knockouts and three losses.