Almost shortly after Masayuki Ito successfully defended his WBO super featherweight title, Top Rank CEO Bob Arum is making his intentions of having one of his fighters get a crack at the title next.
The promoter tweeted that he wants to have Ito defend his title next against current USBA Super Featherweight titleholder Jamel Herring sometime in 2019.
Congratulations to Masayuki Ito on his first successful defense of his 130 pound title. Looking forward to his next fight with the fighting marine Jamel Herring.
— Bob Arum (@BobArum) December 31, 2018
Arum and Top Rank been involved with Ito for his past two fights, both world title fights. Top Rank aired his title win over Christopher Diaz from this past July and then his title defense against Evgeny Chuprakov on the ESPN+ streaming service.
Ito is currently promoted by Teiken Promotions in Japan who has a working relationship with Top Rank, which has allowed fighters from Teiken to fight in the United States on various ESPN platforms. Since ESPN and Top Rank signed a multi-year broadcast deal, ESPN has aired numerous boxing cards from Japan.
Herring, who sports a 19-2 record, is on a three-fight win streak after winning just two of his four fights from 2015 to 2016. Herring is currently not ranked in the top 15 by the WBO, but his latest win against Adeilson Dos Santos took place on December 14 as part of the undercard for Gilberto Ramirez vs. Jesse Hart. Herring could potentially make his way to the organization's rankings in its next update.
