Windhoek
Namibia’s WBO bantamweight intercontinental champion Immanuel ‘Prince’ Naidjala continues to soar on the international boxing rankings, having moved up from 6th position he held last month to 5th place on the latest World Boxing Organisation (WBO) world rankings.
Naidjala was ranked sixth last month after moving up from 11th place he held in December last year.
Marlon Tapales from the Philippines is topping the latest world rankings and is followed by Alexis Santiago (USA) and Alejandro Hernandez (Mexico) in second and third places respectively. South African boxer Lwandile Sityatha, who is the current WBO international champion, holds fourth position.
In his last fight, Naidjala outpointed Nasibu Ramadhani from Tanzania in Windhoek last December to capture the vacant WBO intercontinental bantamweight title. The Namibian, 31, said the improved ranking is motivation for him, and he is now working hard to be a mandatory contender for the world title by the end of the year.
“You know when I stepped into the ring in December I was ranked 11th and since December I have not been in the ring, but my ranking keeps improving. This shows that the quality of boxers I fought is very good and I also deserve to be ranked among the top 5,” he said.
Naidjala said he never thought he will be in the top five so early, but this means he should continue working hard as he is just five steps away from fighting for the world title. He is expected to step into the ring to defend his title on June 11 in Windhoek against Klaas Mboyane of South Africa. –Nampa