By Chris Williams: It looks like undefeated lightweight contender Mercito Gesta (26-0-1, 14 KO’s) will be finally getting the title shot he so badly craves, as his promoters at Top Rank are reportedly getting Gesta a title shot against IBF lightweight champion Miguel Vazquez (32-3, 13 KO’s) for December 8th on the HBO pay per view undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez 4 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

There’s talk of the Gesta-Vazquez fight being the co-main event and that’s pretty hard to believe because Vazquez has a really boring fighting style and Gesta isn’t much better. Neither guy are well known in the United States, although Gesta has a large following in the Filipino community. I still don’t see this as being worthy of a co-main event status. I guess Top Rank promoter Bob Arum would be hoping that the Mexican and Filipino rivalry would be enough to interest fans from those areas to attract interest in this fight. Maybe so, but I personally have no interest whatsoever in seeing this fight at all, period. To me, Gesta vs. Vazquez is more of an undercard on ESPN2 fight rather than a co-main event on a $49.95 HBO PPV. I’d prefer to get a little more for my money if you know what I mean.

Vazquez, 25, defeated #1 IBF Marvin Quintero (25-4, 21 KO’s) by a boring 12 round split decision last Saturday night at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino, in Verona, New York. I thought Vazquez won the fight handily and agreed with one of the judges who scored it 118-110 in his favor.

I can see Gesta getting a nice controversial decision win over Vazquez similar to the victory that Gesta got over Manuel Perez last year in September when Geta was given a 10 round decision in a fight where he was clearly out-boxed for 10 rounds. The 5’10” Vazquez has a three inch height advantage and a four inch reach advantage over the 5’7″ Gesta, and he’s really hard to hit. Vazquez uses his reach, jab and movement much in the same way that bantamweight Anselmo Moreno uses those skills to dominate shorter fighters. I can see Vazquez out-landing Gesta 10 to 1 and still ending up the loser by an ugly controversial decision. I can predict the outcome already and I don’t want to see the fight.

A lot of Filipinos see Gesta as the next Manny Pacquiao. I just don’t see it. He looks average to me and nothing like Pacquiao.