by Francisco Salazar
Junior flyweight contender Felix Alvarado returns to action tonight in a stay-busy fight.
Alvarado will take on Sebastian Sanchez of Mexico in a 10 round bout at the Puerto Salvador Allende in Managua, Nicaragua.
Alvarado (30-2, 26 knockouts), who resides in Managua, knocked out Teeraphong Utaida in the third round of his last bout n Oct. 14. The bout was an IBF elimination bout.
The 28-year-old is the mandatory challenger to IBF junior flyweight titleholder Ryoichi Taguchi. He is also ranked number three by the WBO and number four by the WBC.
Unbeaten since his 12 round unanimous decision loss to Juan Carlos Reveco, Alvarado has won his last 12 bouts in a row.
Sanchez (12-4, 9 KOs), who resides in Teopisca, Chiapas, Mexico, has lost his three bouts. His most notable bout was a ninth round knockout loss to Paul Butler in March of 2016.
Junior bantamweight Melvin Lopez (12-0, 8 KOs), who also resides in Managua, will square off against Aramis Solis of Mexico in an eight round bout.
Both Alvarado and Lopez are managed by William Ramirez.
IN OTHER NEWS: Norwegian boxing expert Roar Petajamaa says he believes Kai Robin Havnaa (11-0, 7 KOs) has the potential to follow in his father’s footsteps and become World Champion.
Speaking ahead of Havnaa’s hotly anticipated homecoming fight on February 3 at the SØR Amfi in Arendal, Petajamaa states “boxing is in his blood” and says, within a year, the undefeated 28 year-old could be challenging for his first major title.
“Kai Robin Havnaa is an exciting boxer with a strong personality and the will and drive to succeed,” says Petajamaa. “He has shown good progress since his first professional fight, and I think he has the potential to go all the way.
“Cruiserweight is a strong weight class, and only Kai Robin himself can determine how far he goes. It’s a long way to the top and it requires a lot of hard work and sacrifice over many years. But boxing is in his blood. His father Magne was a former world champion, and Kai, at the same age, is showing the same talent as his father. I believe within a 1 year he will be within reach of a title match with one of the major federations in Europe or the World.”
Francisco A. Salazar has written for Boxingscene.com since September of 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (Calif.) Star newspaper, RingTV.com, and Knockout Nation. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing