Viloria faces KO artist

MANILA, Philippines - Brian Viloria braces for a tough defense of his WBO flyweight crown as he slugs it out with Giovani Segura on Dec. 11 before an expected banner crowd at the Ynares Sports Center in Pasig.

Segura, who dominated the light flyweight division the last few years, has opted to move up in weight and gain a crack at Viloria in what promises to be a blockbuster of an encounter between two hard-punching fighters.

Viloria dominated Julio Cesar Miranda in the early going but barely held on to win the flyweight title victory earlier this year with the Fil-Am improving his record to 29-3-0, including knockouts.

But against Segura, Viloria will be taking on a slugger who swept his first 20 pro fights, beating former world champions Daniel Reyes and Carlos Tamara, who beat Viloria last year.

Dubbed the Island Assault 3: Champion vs Champion, the Viloria-Segura showdown is set at 9 a.m.

Tickets available through Ticketnet (SM outlets) and Ticketworld - VIP: P500, Ringside: P400, Courtside: P250, Bleachers: P150. Details: www.solarsports.ph.

Segura took his first loss to Cesar Canchila via unanimous decision but he bounced back by knocking out Canchila in the fourth round of their rematch then went on to win his next eight fights, all via KOs.

In his current streak, Segura beat the highly-regarded Ivan Calderon of Puerto Rico and Filipinos Sonny Boy Jaro and Juanito Rubillar.

Nicknamed El Guerrero Azteza, Segura has gained a reputation of being a powerful puncher. He has knocked out 80 percent of his opponents and posted 11 first round knockout wins.