Miel Fajardo and Zyvyr Medecilo will each try to win their first world boxing championships in enemy territory.
The two boxers will vie for world titles next month, with Fajardo facing Masamichi Yabuki for the International Boxing Federation flyweight world championship, and Medecilo taking on Takeshi Ishii for the World Boxing Association’s minimumweight world title.
The matches will serve as the main event and co-main event of the card that will be fought on November 26 at the Ebara Wave Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
Asked about the home court disadvantage in perhaps the biggest fights of their careers so far, the two voiced readiness to conquer enemy territory.
‘Ang mahirap doon kasi sa amin ni Kuya Miel, sa klima pa lang, yun, advantage na agad sa klima. Kami, maga-adapt pa, sila adapt na nila yung klima,’ Modecilo said in a press conference Monday at the New World Hotel in Makati.
‘Ang gagawin talaga namin is yung ensayo namin dito nang maayos saka kukunin talaga namin ang belt, yung dalawang world championship. Kukunin talaga namin ito,’ he added.
Medecilo stressed that during a previous visit to Hong Kong, his nose bled due to the cold climate. Now, as part of his preparations, he is putting his air conditioning unit at home at max.
Fajardo, for his part, seconded that adjusting to the climate will be a challenge for them.
‘Yun nga, yun ang una, makapag-adjust kami sa klima doon kasi alam namin na malamig doon e. Yun ang pinaka-importante sa amin,’ he said.
Fajardo, though, said that he has had experiences facing hometown bets in foreign countries before.
His latest win came against Tobias Jeremias Reyes of Argentina.
The Filipino got a technical knockout win over Reyes in Galvez, Argentina earlier this year.
‘Pero sa dayo-dayo, sanay na rin ako. Kaya ang gagawin lang namin, yung ginagawa namin sa ensayo.’
The heavy-hitting Fajardo is holding a 14-3-2 win-loss-draw record, and is the official IBF flyweight mandatory challenger.
‘Sa akin, ang motivation ko pagtapak sa ring ay isipin ko yung family ko, para sa team. Gagawin talaga namin ang makakaya namin sa taas ng ring,’ Fajardo, who sparred with Rex Tso in the leadup to the training, said.
Medecilo, for his part, is undefeated through nine matches. If he wins against Ishii, he will be the fastest Filipino boxer in history to capture a world championship, breaking the record set by Malcolm Tunacao who won his world title in his 11th fight.
The young boxer stressed his readiness to fight for the world title, which came together in a matter of a few days.
He was in Japan for a sparring contract, and two days later, he was offered a chance to fight for the title against Ishii.
‘Actually, reading-ready na po kasi pagkatapos ko ng laban sa WBC, nag-ensayo kagad ako kasi nagsabi si boss sa akin na hindi matatapos itong taong ito, lalaban na tayo ng world championship,’ he said.
‘Sabi ko nga sa boss ko atsaka kay coach, ensayo tayo tuloy-tuloy. Tapos nabigyan ako ng kontrata ng sparring, ensayo, sparring, hanggang dito na po. Nakaabot na ako sa world title shot.’
The two fighters will fly off to Japan about a week before their bout to acclimate to the cool Japan climate.