Five for 2019: Chua vs. Ng

THE lightweight division has long been ruled domestically by George Kambosos.

Having twice beaten his two most worthy challengers – being convincing points wins over both Brandon Ogilvie and Qamil Balla – the division has needed a well overdue refresh.

What we think:

In a year that saw minimal movements at a domestic level, 2018 ended with the emergence of unbeaten pair Jacob Ng and Francis Chua.

The former, a charismatic and dynamic sprinter, burst onto the scene with a surprisingly one-sided win over Gaige Ireland for national title honours in December.

Ng (9-0, 7 KOs) injects a fresh and unique perspective into a division that has long been dominated by conventional boxers, until now.

Meanwhile, Chua (6-0-1, 2 KOs) scored a standalone candidate for Upset of the Year with an unlikely decision win over Kye MacKenzie, derailing his world level ambitions last month.

What the experts say – Ben Damon:

“Jacob Ng is perhaps the flashiest boxer in the country and in breaking down Gaige Ireland for his Australian lightweight title, showed he now has a boxing style to match his ring entrance.

“Chua was unknown outside of his own immediate family before he produced the runaway upset of the year against world number two Kye MacKenzie on the Horn-Mundine undercard.

“If the two of them met then quite literally anything could happen!”

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