By REYNALD MAGALLON
After a series of misfortunes, Philippine boxing has finally risen and Melvin Jerusalem was the anointed one on Easter Sunday, March 31.
The pride of Bukidnon defeated Japanese defending champion Yudai Shigeoka via split decision to wrest the WBC minimumweight crown before a hostile crowd inside the International Conference Hall in Nagoya, Japan.
Jerusalem knocked down Shigeoka twice, first with a booming right in the third round and another in the sixth round to get the nods of the two judges at the end of the 12-round bout.
The 28-year-old Filipino fighter had judges Jae Bong Kim and Barry Lindenman scoring the fight in his favor with a similar 114-112 scorecard while judge Malcolm Bulner had Shigeoka winning with a 114-113 count.
Jerusalem improved his record to 22-3 with 12 KOs while Shigeoka absorbed his first taste of defeat after nine bouts.
The Filipino fighter was the aggressor in the early goings of the fight, dictating the tempo with timely body shots that obviously hurt and slowed down the Japanese champion. The booming right then staggered Shigeoka who fell to the canvas but immediately got back up in the third round.
Needing to recover from the early knockdown, Shigeoka pressed the fight and also landed heavy hits to the head of Jerusalem including a big left in the fourth round. The Japanese kept coming in the ensuing frames before the Filipino caught him with a right counter straight that sent him down to the canvas for the second time.
The stunning win not only allowed Jerusalem to return to the top of the minimumweight division but he has also given the country its first and lone world champion after several notable compatriots fell prey to the thriving Japanese boxing in the past few months.
He ended that curse that seemingly haunted Filipino fighters in the Land of the Rising Sun after Marlon Tapales and Jerwin Ancajas both lost their respective title fights against the champion brothers Naoya and Takuma Inoue in Japan.
Even compatriot Jake Amparo fell victim to the curse hours earlier after losing via second round knockout in the co-main event against Yudai’s brother and IBF minimumweight champion Ginjiro Shigeoka.
For Jerusalem, it was a repeat of history after he also won his first world title in Japan after he defeated another Japanese champion in Masataka Taniguchi last year in Osaka to wrest his previous WBA minimumweight belt.
