Two Filipino prizefighters—Pedro Taduran and Marlon Tapales—appear to have their futures plotted out after contrasting results this weekend.
Pedro Taduran Seeking Unification
Taduran, fresh off defending his IBF minimumweight belt, looks like he wants a shot at Oscar Collazo, the Puerto Rican star who also happens to be the most decorated fighter in the weight class. That seems to be the plan, at least based on the bold callout of MP Promotions President Sean Gibbons after Taduran dispatched Gustavo Alvarez on Saturday.
“Oscar Collazo, you can’t run anymore from Pedro. Bring that WBO, bring that WBA, Manny Pacquiao Promotions, Miguel Cotto Promotions, let’s go!” Gibbons called out as he, MP Promotions founder Manny Pacquiao, Taduran, and his team posed for pictures in-ring after his dominant showing against Alvarez.
Should Collazo acquiesce, he and Taduran will be fighting a unification bout, with Taduran’s IBF crown and Collazo’s WBO and WBA belts likely to be on the line.
Marlon Tapales Moves Up to Featherweight—and It’s the Right Call
Tapales, fresh off an upset loss to Yukinori Oguni on Friday, is not dwelling on his latest setback and will instead take his talents to the featherweight division.
“This is life, you win some, and you lose some,” Tapales wrote on Facebook. “The important thing is to keep getting up.”
The move up in weight might be understandable. The former unified super bantamweight champion came in at 123.56 pounds at the official weigh-in—0.06 pounds over the super bantamweight limit—though he was ultimately allowed to compete. Oguni, on the other hand, weighed in cleanly at 123 pounds.
The weight issue, it turns out, was a signal. Tapales acknowledged as much in his post-fight message, saying his body could no longer comfortably make the super bantamweight limit. The solution, as he sees it, is straightforward: move up.
“I will be back to try featherweight and be comfortable with the weight,” he said.
It is the right call. At 34, Tapales has spent years draining down to 122 pounds, and the toll of that process has been visible. A move to featherweight—where he can come in naturally and focus on performance rather than survival at the scale—gives him a legitimate path to relevance in a new division.
