The coveted belt

The coveted belt | Daily Tribune

It’s not often that a world title fight is held on local soil.

But this Sunday night, Manny Pacquiao Presents: Blow-By-Blow is staging one major card at the Mandaluyong City College Gym.

It will be headlined by Melvin Jerusalem, who makes the first defense of the World Boxing Council (WBC) minimumweight crown against mandatory contender Luis Castillo of Mexico.

While there have been a few memorable bouts at home, this will be the first time that a WBC championship will be staged.

Lately, the world title fights were for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) or International Boxing Federation (IBF) straps and even for the World Boxing Association jewels.

But the WBC title clash, considered by fight fans as the most noteworthy of the four governing bodies, is quite rate.

The last WBC title fight in the country took place in 1999 when Pacquiao rumbled with Gabriel Mira, a Mexican, at the Araneta Coliseum. Pacquiao won by knockout.

Interestingly, Jerusalem is the first Filipino to win the WBC 105-lb plum.

There had been several who attempted to win it but all wound up empty-handed.

In the 1990s — during the reign of the magnificent Mexican Ricardo Lopez — he repulsed the challenge of Manny Melchor and Edito “Ala” Villamor.

They were the most popular Filipino boxers who figured in a bid to WBC title and Lopez knocked them out both.

Obviously, the WBC belt is the most popular in the eyes of Filipino fight fans.

A WBC title, though the same as the WBA, WBO and IBF, seems to be shinier than the rest.

It is also the titlebelt identifiable to the finest Filipino fighters of all time.

The Mexico-based boxing body was once held by Flash Elorde in the 1960s.

Other premier Filipino WBC champions include Pacquiao, Luisito Espinosa, Gerry Peñalosa, Erbito Salavarria, Rolando Navarrete as well as Nonito Donaire, a list that sparkles like no other.

And this is the reason why Jerusalem is determined to keep the title and send Castillo home in tears.

“Even before, I had long wanted to win the WBC titlebelt because this is the belt that every boxer would like to win,” Jerusalem said.

Jerusalem insists he is not handing the title to Castillo on a silver platter.

He had to walk the tightrope before winning it last March in Nagoya.

If he gets past the rugged Castillo, Jerusalem said he would like to go after another belt.

And that one is Puerto Rican Oscar Collazo’s World Boxing Organization belt, the same one he had briefly worn last year.

“Unifying is another dream of mine,” Jerusalem said.

But before he thinks about that, Jerusalem has to clear a major roadblock this weekend.