By Geoff Poundes
A special prize awaits the winner of this weekend’s flyweight encounter between former WBC light-fly champion Edgar Sosa and his fellow Mexican Wilbert Uicab. Ostensibly they are contesting the WBC’s “Silver” title, which in old money translates to an eliminator for Sonny Boy Jaro’s “proper” WBC belt. Confusing? Not really, once you’ve unraveled the sanctioning nonsense. Sosa and Uicab will be eying Jaro’s throne enviously, particularly in light of the new champions shock defeat last month of long-time titlist Pongsaklek Wonjonkham, who’s hold on the title had stretched back eleven years and 25 defences. The unheralded Jaro had failed in three previous assaults on world titles, and with a record of ten losses in forty-nine fights, both Sosa and Uicab will be itching to fetch the Philippine into a ring.
On paper, Sosa, 44-7, 27 KO’s, seems the most likely to pick up the opportunity. A former WBC light-flyweight champion in his own right, Sosa can call upon deeper experience and has faced better quality opposition than Uicab. He failed in his own assault on Wonjonkham’s title six months ago when he was decisively outpointed over 12 rounds, but would consider himself a favourite against Jaro, as he does against fellow countryman Uicab:
“After watching what happened with Sonny Boy Jaro, who upset Pongsaklek (Wonjongkam), I gained more encouragement. I think by beating Uicab I’ll receive a new opportunity for a world title. It will be a tough fight, but my experience will bring me through”, said Sosa.
Wilbert Uicab, 33-6, 18 KO’s, has other ideas of course. He’s held this “Silver” title before, and will be performing in front of his home crowd at the Oasis Hotel Complex in Cancun . At 28 he’s younger by four years and perhaps fresher than Sosa, but he’s coming off a loss in his last fight when losing a close-ish decision to Japan’s Toshiyuki Igarashi in Tokyo last November. Uicab is hoping that this time home advantage will make the difference:
“Sosa and I have the same conditions and the same pressure. We want to win and with the same desire so we can be sure it will be a difficult bout with the difference for me being fighting in front of my people. I will be champion”, he said.
This will be a competitive contest and will almost certainly go the 12 round distance, with Edgar Sosa deservedly favourite to take a unanimous decision.
On the undercard former three-weight world champion Humberto Soto tunes up for a mouth-watering clash in June with Lucas Matthysse, when he boxes Brazilian Claudinei Lacerda over ten rounds.
Soto, 57-7, 34 KO’s, has had a long and eventful career, and is now campaigning at 140 pounds, having started out fifteen years ago as a bantamweight. He’s still only 31, and remains ambitious, and he should have little trouble with 30 year old Lacerda, who’s 14-2 slate features few decent-level opponents.
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