MELVIN JERUSALEM will take a cautious stance when he defends his World Boxing Organization minimum weight belt for the first time against Puerto Rico’s Oscar Collazo on Sunday at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California.
A newbie in the pros, the 29-year-old Bukidnon native said he won’t let his 26-year-old opponent to find his rhythm in the 12-round fight.
The Puerto Rican, Jerusalem said, is a tactical fighter because of his amateur background.
“He [Collazo] is an old timer in the amateurs and he’s undefeated there in six fights before going pro,” Jerusalem’s trainer Michael Domingo told BusinessMirror on Monday through chat message from the US.
“So far, Melvin is now doing just a spar play as the fight gets near and he’s okay. Jerusalem and Domingo are in their final few days of training after arriving in the US last week.
“Melvin is just four pounds over and it’s so easy to trim down,” Domingo said. “He’s in good condition.”
The limit in minimum weight is 105 lbs or 48 kgs.
Jerusalem, who owns a 20-2 win-loss record with 12 knockouts, scored a impressive second-round technical knockout to snatch Japanese Masataka Taniguchi’s WBO belt in Osaka last January 6.
Collazo, on the other hand, defeated former world champion Vic Saludar last July via unanimous decision before knocking out Mexican Yudel Reyes in the fifth round last January 28.