By Joe Koizumi
Filipino sharpshooter Melvin Jerusalem (22-3, 12 KOs), 104.25, dethroned WBC minimumweight champ Yudai Shigeoka (8-1, 5 KOs), 105, as he floored the Japanese titleholder twice with very well-timed right counters in rounds two and six, winning a split decision (114-112 twice for him, 113-114 against him) over twelve hard-fought rounds on Sunday in Nagoya, Japan.
Jerusalem, 30, once displayed a trick here by scoring a one-punch second-round stoppage over WBO ruler Masataka Taniguchi in January of the previous year. It was a see-saw affair, but Melvin’s two knockdowns paid off in wresting the belt from the game but rough champ. The open scoring system read: all 38-37 for the challenger after the fourth, and 77-73 twice for Melvin and 75-75 after the eighth. Yudai, 26, desperately attempted to score with big shots in the last four sessions, but it was Melvin that saved his lead on points to seize the world belt again here.
Promoter: KWORLD3 (AKA Kameda) Promotions.
Thank God, Ph has a champion
Another blind mouse favoring the loser this Oldman judge needs to be banned from judging in boxing she doesn’t know what she is doing