Marlon Tapales in his May fight in Manila. | Photo from Sanman Boxing
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Former two-division world champion Marlon “Nightmare” Tapales continued his ascension in the world rankings.
He recently climbed to the No. 3 spot in the International Boxing Federation’s (IBF) super bantamweight world rankings.
This was officially revealed by Viva Promotions of Brendan Gibbons, the son of Tapales’ promoter Sean Gibbons of the MP Promotions.
READ: Tapales holds firm in top 3 spot of the 122-pound division
Tapales (38W-4L, 20KOs) is on his way to earn another world title shot in the stacked super bantamweight division, hoping to reclaim his lost glory.
The 32-year-old Tapales once held the IBF world super bantamweight title after scoring a split decision win against Murodjon Akhmadaliev in 2023 in the United States.
READ: Tapales beats Thai foe, Gaballo suffers first rd. TKO
He also won the World Boxing Association (WBA) Super World Bantamweight title in his fight against Akhmadaliev.
Another world title shot
However, Tapales eventually lost both world titles when he fought Japanese boxing superstar Naoya Inoue last December 26 with the latter being hailed as the undisputed super bantamweight world champion.
READ: Tapales named Ring Magazine PHL’s ‘Fighter of the Year’
Despite the defeat, Tapales’ name remained relevant in the super bantamweight division as he’s ranked No. 3 in the World Boxing Council (WBC) and No. 5 in the WBA.
Most recently, he was No. 3 in the IBF’s latest world rankings.
Tapales also won the WBC Asian Continental super bantamweight title against Thai Nattapong Jankaew via a first-round knockout in Manila last May.
With this development, Tapales might soon earn another world title shot, or perhaps a rematch against Inoue.
Besides Tapales former three-division world champion John Riel Casimero is also highly-ranked in the 122-pound division.
Casimero is the No. 3 in the World Boxing Organization (WBO), while highly-touted prospect Carl Jammes Martin of the Ifugao Province is trailing him at the No. 4 spot.
Martin is also ranked No. 6 in the IBF.