Viloria faces Segura, seeks longer reign

MANILA, Philippines - Brian Viloria gears up for a key fight against Mexican Giovani Segura on Dec. 11 at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig where he hopes to erase the stigma of a string of losses while defending his titles.

Viloria dethroned Julio Cesar Miranda last July to claim the WBO flyweight crown but is hard pressed to defend it against Segura to firm up his bid as a legitimate contender in the flyweight division.

Viloria (29-3-0, 16 KOs) knocked out Eric Ortiz in his first attempt at the WBC light flyweight title. He stopped Ulises Solis in the 11th in his first shot at the IBF light flyweight title.

Earlier this year, he won the WBO flyweight title in his very first title attempt in the higher division.

Winning titles for the first time has never been hard for Viloria. The hard part is keeping them.

After winning the WBC light fly title, Viloria defended it once against Jose Antonio Aguirre but lost it to Omar Soto. He failed to regain the title in two other tries.

Viloria also defended his IBF light fly crown once against Jesus Iribe but lost it to Carlos Tamara.

This time, he vowed to do better against an opponent who boasts of a 28-1-1 record, including 24 KOs, in the fight dubbed: Island Assault 3: Champion vs Champion.

A win will also get him a higher rating in Ring Magazine’s pound-for-pound standing.

Meanwhile, tickets are available through Ticketnet (SM outlets) and Ticketworld - VIP: P500, ringside: P400, courtside: P250, bleachers: P150. For details, visit www.solarsports.ph.