Two title fights – one at flyweight, the other at junior bantamweight – will take place on June 6 at the Aichi International Exhibition Center in Tokoname City, Aichi, Japan.
3150Fight announced that Masamichi Yabuki will defend his IBF 112lbs belt against Rene Calixto Bibiano, while Willibaldo Garcia will put his IBF 115lbs title on the line against Andrew Moloney.
Yabuki, 19-4 (18 KOs), is a 33-year-old from Nagoya, Aichi, Japan who has held world titles in two weight classes.
After suffering losses early in his career to future champs Junto Nakatani and Seigo Yuri Akui, as well as contender Daniel Matellon, Yabuki went on to upset Kenshiro Teraji via 10th-round TKO in 2021, winning the WBC 108lbs belt in the process. Teraji regained the title emphatically in their rematch six months later, knocking Yabuki out in the third round.
Yabuki’s rebuilding began with a TKO of future titleholder Thanongsak Simsri in 2022. And in 2024, Yabuki stopped Sivenathi Nontshinga to win the IBF junior flyweight title. He then moved up to flyweight and took out Angel Ayala in the 12th round to gain the IBF flyweight title. For his first defense, Yabuki knocked out former 108lbs titleholder this past December, once again in the 12th round.
Calixto Bibiano, 24-1-1 (10 KOs), is a 31-year-old from Mexico who is ranked No. 5 by the IBF and No. 13 by the WBC at 112lbs, and No. 9 by the WBO at 115.
Both of his blemishes came in title fights against the aforementioned Willibaldo Garcia. The two men fought to a draw in a bout for the vacant IBF 115lbs title in late 2024, and then Garcia won a split decision in their rematch last May. Calixto Bibiano returned in December with a four-round TKO of a 12-5 foe.
Garcia, 23-6-2 (13 KOs), suffered four of those defeats within the first nine months of turning pro. His other losses came against Alexandro Santiago by majority decision in 2020 and former bantamweight titleholder Paul Butler by split decision in 2021.
Garcia has gone 11-0-1 since, with his two most recent fights being the draw with Calixto Bibiano and then the rematch win. That means it will have been a year out of the ring for the 36-year-old from Tijuana, Mexico.
Moloney, 28-4 (18 KOs), is a longtime contender in the junior bantamweight division who briefly held a secondary title. The 35-year-old Australian is ranked No. 3 by the IBF – the highest-rated fighter with the sanctioning body – and No. 7 by the WBC. He went 0-2 with one no-contest in his trilogy with Joshua Franco in 2020 and 2021.
Moloney was the victim of a highlight-reel 12th-round KO at the hands of Nakatani in 2023, lost a split decision to former titleholder Pedro Guevara in 2024, and has won two bouts since against nondescript opposition. Last year, Moloney pulled out of an eliminator against Argi Cortes for this very IBF 115lbs title that he's now fighting for.
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
