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Add FightsATW on GoogleStanding at 532 meters tall, Mount Parker casts a shadow over the district of Quarry Bay on Hong Kong Island’s north-eastern corner. Connected to its peak by a series of trails woven into lush greenery is the Tai Tam Reservoir, where a set of dams, aqueducts and bridges conspire to paint images of picturesque landscapes characterized by the contrast of jade waters and emerald hills.
It’s here that Filipino world title contender and renowned knockout artist Miel Fajardo (14-3-2, 12 KOs) finds himself in the lead-up to his challenge to the throne of IBF flyweight champion Masamichi Yabuki (20-4, 18 KOs) in Tokyo on November 26.
As he pounds the gravel and bitumen in his temporary forest abode during each day’s grueling roadwork session, the 26-year-old can’t escape the feeling of belonging within. Though he is over 1100 kilometers away from his Manila residence, Fajardo holds no apprehension. After all, he’s on the road again, the place he has made a name for himself.
Speaking to FightsATW.com on the final day of his intense 30-day training block at the RCT gym in Quarry Bay with manager and former fighter Lennon Tsoi serving as translator, ‘The Silent Assassin’ is well and truly living up to the moniker. Sitting in a quiet spot in the gym, with a steel door and large clock as his backdrop, he waits patiently, breaking his silence only when called upon.
Just a few hours from boarding the two-and-a-half-hour flight home, back to the nation he says he is extremely proud to represent, Fajardo talks of his fondness for training in Hong Kong and being the traveling combatant more generally.
“The best thing here is the road work, the mountains, the conditioning,” he said.
“I actually like it, being the blue corner and being the away team. I’ve done that since my very first fight. I like that feeling; I like being the underdog. I feel better that way.”
Soon after the plane lands, it will be back to camp, training with Erickson and Jericho Asilio, the brothers who have looked after and guided Fajardo since his professional debut as a 16-year-old. Accompanying the countless hours of pad holding and combination calling, the pair have racked up their fair share of frequent flyer miles alongside their charge.
They’ve also helped pick up and put back together the pieces of shattered dreams along the way. Casting an eye back to 2024, it seemed that any world title hopes Fajardo may have held had all but died at the hands of two high-profile losses. The surrender of his OPBF light flyweight title in Japan to future world champion Thanongsak Simsri in April was compounded by a December defeat to Mchanja Yohana in the Tanzanian’s backyard.
Backs against the wall, the team rebounded the following year. Having made the jump to flyweight in the Yohana contest, the product of Agusan del Sur province fought twice in the Philippines in 2025, the latter bout yielding the IBF Pan Pacific title and, more importantly, opening the door to the path back to world title contention.
With that, Fajardo found himself another big away fight, this time in Santa Fe, Argentina in April of this year to take on Tobias Jeremias Reyes in an IBF eliminator. Now back in his comfort zone and making the ring walk in another foreign land, the road warrior showed no signs of weakness.
Firing off a swarm of crushing left hooks, Fajardo figuratively punched his ticket to the big time, putting Reyes on the canvas four times en route to having his hand raised just 65 seconds after the opening bell. As he recalls, the emotions came flooding out.
“Super happy and super excited that my dream can come true, that I can fight for the world title, which I hoped for since I debuted at 16 years old,” he said.
Though the road has been a source of solace, fighting Masamichi Yabuki looms as a proverbial barricade. Since knocking out Sivenathi Nontshinga in October 2024 to seize the IBF strap, his second world title in as many weight classes, the 34-year-old from Nagoya has quickly set about establishing himself as the best 112 lb pugilist on the planet.
Bearing witness to Yabuki showcasing his class in each of his three subsequent successful defences, Fajardo has become well aware of the challenge that lies ahead. Scaling Mount Parker is one thing, reaching the summit of Mount Fuji is another.
“I think that Yabuki is one of the best world champions in Japan right now,” he surmised. “He really has good skills, good power. He is top three knockout punchers in the world and number one in the flyweight division.
“Yabuki is a great opponent.”
The tasks’ magnitude aside, there is a steeliness to Fajardo that’s hard to ignore. Perhaps it’s the language barrier, or the fact that he’s a man of few words, that creates a sense of resolve. Maybe it’s that he’s a fighter who’s tasted defeat before and has no fear of losing. Then again, it could be the key source of confidence that’s been a constant throughout his 10-year pro career. After all, Miel Fajardo’s on the road again.
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