By Ian S Palmer
The vacant WBO Bantamweight Title is up for grabs this Saturday, May 13th as Jason Moloney of Australia takes on Vincent Astrolabio of the Philippines. The 12-round fight from Stockton, California can be seen live in America on ESPN and ESPN+ while UK fans can see it on Sky Sports Action. Moloney last fought in October when he beat Nawaphon Kaikanha by a wide 12-round unanimous decision. Astrolobio last boxed in December when he stopped Nikoloai Potapov in the sixth round to win the vacant WBO Inter-Continental Bantamweight Belt.
The 32-year-old Moloney enters the ring with a mark of 25-2 with 19 Ko’s. His first defeat came at the hands of IBF World Champion Emmanuel Rodriguez of Puerto Rico in October, 2018 when he dropped a split decision and he was stopped by Naoya Inoue in the seventh round in October, 2020 in a shot at the WBA Super World, and IBF Bantamweight Titles. Moloney turned pro in 2014 after an amateur career and has boxed 150 rounds since.
As a pro, he won the vacant Oriental and Pacific WBA Silver Super Bantamweight Title in 2017 and the vacant British Commonwealth Bantamweight Title in 2018, Moloney added the vacant WBC Silver Bantamweight Belt in August, 2021 when he beat Joshua Greer Jr by a 10-round unanimous decision and then the vacant WBO International Bantamweight Crown last June when he stopped Aston Palicte in the third round. Moloney has displayed solid power up to now with a current knockout ratio of 70.4 but has gone the distance in three of his last four fights.
He had won four straight contests by stoppage until running into ‘The Monster’ Inoue from Japan however. Besides Rodriguez, Inoue and possibly Greer, Moloney hasn’t really fought any other world-class opponents but handled himself well in his two world title shots, especially against Rodriguez in October, 2018 when the fight could have gone either way for the IBF Title. Moloney stands 5-feet-5-inches tall with a 65-inch reach and also has wins over Leonardo Baez and Dixon Flores. He’s a solid pro but just hasn’t been able to get over the hump when it comes to winning a world belt.
As for Astrolabio, he’s 26 years old and has fought 118 rounds since making his pro debut in 2015. He carries a record of 18-3 with 13 Ko’s and also has good power in his fists with a current knockout ratio of 62 per cent. Like Moloney, he measures 5-feet-5-inches tall and has a slight half-inch reach advantage as his wingspan is 65.5 inches. Astrolabio was a pretty good amateur and fought at the 2014 Philippine National Games as a flyweight.
He made a name for himself as a pro in February, 2022 when he handed former World Champion Guillermo Rigondeaux of Cuba a 10-round unanimous decision loss to win the vacant WBC International Bantamweight Title. He dropped Rigondeaux in the eights round and went on to win 95-94 on all three judge’s scorecards.
Astrolabio has been beaten three times as a pro as he dropped an eight-round unanimous decision to John Mark Apolinario in 2017, was stopped in the fourth round by Yuki Strong Kobayashi in 2018 and lost a 10-round majority decision to ZongLi He in 2018 in a shot at the vacant WBO Asia Pacific Youth Super Flyweight Title. Since turning pro he;s also captured the vacant Philippines Mindanao Professional Boxing Federation (MinProBA) Bantamweight Title and the vacant WBO Oriental Bantamweight Title.
Prediction…
Both boxers have power and fine skills with Moloney having more of a relentless style. If he’s ever going to win a world title though it has to be now as Astrolabio isn’t on the same level as Emmanuel Rodriguez and Naoya Inoue in his first two title shots. Astrolabio could surprise Moloney with his power but if Moloney lets his hands go like he usually does and his chin holds up I’m expecting him to win a world belt on his third attempt in a very close fight.
