In his first WBC world title defense, Melvin Jerusalem emerged on top, beating Luis Castillo in front of a happy Mandaluyong City crowd.
Melvin Jerusalem is still WBC world minimumweight king.
In front of a partisan crowd at the Mandaluyong City College Gymnasium, Jerusalem battered Luis Castillo with pinpoint accuracy on the way to the unanimous decision win in the main event of the Manny Pacquiao Presents: Blow by Blow on Sunday, September 22.
The judges scored the fight, 118-109, 120-107, 120-107 all for Jerusalem.
The 30-year-old Filipino pugilist thus hiked his record to 23-3, with 12 KOs, as he made the first defense of his WBC world title that he won in March.
The pride of Bukidnon set the tone early, unleashing a lethal 1-2 combination, the last one of which was a right straight that floored the Mexican.
It was all Jerusalem from there.
Jerusalem, though, could not repeat the same feat in the succeeding rounds and had to settle for the decision.
While he was simply outclassing the visitor from the get-go, the Sanman fighter based in Cebu admitted that the blows he endured from Castillo stung.
"Nasaktan (din ako). Malakas kalaban talaga, matibay," said Jerusalem, referring to Castillo who absorbed a first loss after 21 straight wins in his professional career.
[Related: Jerwin "Pretty Boy" Ancajas beats Thai Sukpraserd Ponpitak in anticlimactic fashion]
Earlier, Filipino boxer Jerwin Ancajas made a triumphant ring return after beating Sukpraserd Ponpitak via disqualification.
Gabriel Santisima also disposed of Jelo Bacalso via knockout.