Hong Kong hosts its first title fight in 5 years, with local boxer Saagar Pradhan as the top program

On Saturday, Hong Kong will host its first professional boxing title fight in over five years, with local boxer Saagar Pradhan taking on Thai opponent Passakron Yakkala for the vacant World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Asia-Pacific Youth Super Welter Championship belt.

Pradhan’s first title fight, the bout at PMQ Qube, will be the main event of “The Encounter,” a program that includes six professional and three amateur fights.

“Climbing the career ladder and finally getting this opportunity is definitely a big step up for me,” said the 23-year-old orthodox fighter with a career record of 3-0. “I trust in our training and am grateful for this opportunity.”

His opponent is Thailand's best super welterweight boxer with a career record of 7-2-0, but Pradhan appeared confident about the fight despite a lack of information about the 21-year-old from Khon Kaen.

“He doesn't have a lot of footage, but from what I've seen, he's good,” said the Hong Kong native of Nepali parents, who was born in the city. “We've had time to prepare for this, we've done hundreds of rounds of sparring. [against boxers from South Korea, Thailand and the United Kingdom] and then a lot of conditioning training in the last four months.