WELJON Mindoro Photo courtesy of Weljon Mindoro/FB
BOXING

Mindoro reverts to pro status

Nick Giongco

Hard-hitting middleweight Weljon Mindoro is being eyed to return to the professional ranks next month after a stunning early exit in the 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games last month in Bangkok.

The target date for Mindoro’s comeback is 21 February with Zamboanga as venue — his birthplace — for his 2026 debut.

Armed with a formidable 15-0-1 win-loss-draw record with 15 knockouts, Mindoro was recruited by the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines to represent the Philippines in the SEA Games and was upset in his very first and only bout by a Vietnamese rival.

Mindoro, obviously unfamiliar with how boxing is fought in the amateurs, was leaning on his vaunted power to get the job done.

Instead, Mindoro could not land one telling blow that could have shut the lights out of his opponent, who wisely moved from side-to-side en route to a points victory.

Mindoro also fights under the VIVA Promotions banner.