Marlon Tapales faces Indonesian prospect in GenSan

Marlon Tapales (left) and Jon Jon Jet (right). | Facebook photos

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Former two-division world champion Marlon “Nightmare” Tapales is set for a homecoming bout after his originally scheduled fight in Cambodia was relocated to General Santos City on April 27.

In a recent announcement, Sanman Boxing, Tapales’ current promoter, confirmed the venue and date change from Siem Reap, Cambodia—which was initially set for April 14—to General Santos City. While the exact reason behind the shift remains unclear, Tapales remains focused and ready for battle.

The Filipino boxing star will face Indonesian contender Jon Jon Jet in a high-stakes clash for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) International Silver super bantamweight title.

Currently ranked No. 2 by the WBC behind Mexico’s Alan David Picasso, the 33-year-old Tapales is looking to strengthen his case for another world title shot. A victory could inch him closer to a possible rematch or showdown with Japan’s Naoya Inoue, the reigning undisputed super bantamweight world champion.

But before any title aspirations can be revisited, Tapales must first deal with Jet—a hard-hitting Indonesian knockout artist who holds a record of 15 wins, 1 loss, and 1 draw, including 12 victories by knockout.

The 30-year-old Jet, a former WBC Asian Continental super bantamweight champion, brings solid international experience to the ring, having fought extensively in Thailand. His lone defeat came in 2019 against Australia’s Luke Boyd.

Tapales, on the other hand, brings a wealth of experience with a 39-4 (20 KOs) record. He has bounced back strongly from his loss to Inoue in their unification bout last December with back-to-back victories.

Also featured in the card is fellow world-rated Filipino Joey Canoy (23-5-2, 14 KOs), who will take on Vietnam’s Minh Phat Sam (10-5, 8 KOs) in the co-main event for the WBC International minimumweight title.