Jerusalem dethroned by Kuse in bloody rematch

CEBU, Philippines —  Philippine boxing suffered a major blow as Melvin “El Gringo” Jerusalem lost his World Boxing Council (WBC) minimumweight title, falling to South Africa’s Siyakholwa Kuse via a heartbreaking unanimous decision at the Emperor’s Palace in Johannesburg on Saturday night (early Sunday morning Phl time).

The defeat cuts short Jerusalem’s impressive reign in his fourth defense, leaving International Boxing Federation (IBF) 105-pound champion Pedro Taduran as the lone remaining world titleholder for the Philippines.

Despite a heroic, blood-soaked effort that saw Jerusalem score a dramatic 11th round knockdown, the steep hill of Kuse’s hometown advantage and a debilitating early injury proved too much to overcome.

The bout began as a tense, tactical chess match, with Jerusalem initially fighting on the back foot and trying to timing the taller challenger.

However, disaster struck early in the third round when Jerusalem suffered a severe cut over his left eye.

As the rounds ticked away, the cut continually reopened, noticeably obstructing the champion’s vision and forcing him out of his technical comfort zone.

Compelled to play the aggressor to save his belt, Jerusalem had to march forward into a barrage of heavy counterpunches from the South African.

By the middle rounds, Kuse began utilizing his height and reach to dictate the pace, unleashing hard combinations to Jerusalem’s body and head.

Whenever Jerusalem managed to land his own sharp counters, his work was largely drowned out by the deafening roars of the partisan Johannesburg crowd.

The reality of fighting on foreign soil hit home after the eighth round when the WBC’s open scoring was announced to the arena. Jerusalem was down on all three official cards: 74–78, 75–77, and 75–78.

With Kuse continuing to sweep the ninth and tenth rounds, the proud Filipino champion entered the championship rounds knowing he needed a miracle stoppage to retain his crown.

Showing the immense heart typical of a Filipino champion, Jerusalem dug deep in the 11th round. Sensing Kuse might be getting complacent, Jerusalem unleashed a powerful shot that sent the challenger crashing to the canvas for a flash knockdown.

The arena went silent as a rejuvenated Jerusalem swarmed the hometown fighter, hunting for the finish.

Kuse was forced into survival mode, desperately holding and retreating as the clock ticked down.

Unfortunately for the stable out of the Philippines, Kuse managed to weather the storm and used the final round to steer clear of danger and cross the finish line.

The judges ringside confirmed the passing of the torch, scoring the bout 116–111, 116–112, and 115–112.

In a testament to Kuse’s dominance in the middle rounds, even the Filipino judge on the panel scored the bout in favor of the South African.

With the defeat, Jerusalem fell to 25-4 with 12KOs and will look to rebuild and secure a trilogy with his African archrival, who now holds a 10-3-1 record with 4KOs.