World boxing champion Melvin Jerusalem insists he feels cheated that Puerto Rican two-belt titleholder Oscar Collazo is going to fight next month while he is left to stagnate.
Jerusalem, the World Boxing Council titlist, was supposed to battle World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Association ruler Collazo on 14 March in Anaheim, California.
But just a couple of days after Jerusalem announced the unification clash, his team learned that the fight is off and that efforts are under way to stage it in June or July.
Jerusalem thought he and Collazo would have to wait before returning to action but he was shocked and disappointed that Collazo is proceeding with the March date against Jesus Haro of the United States.
“I trained long and hard to find out later that the fight’s not happening next month and that he gets to fight while I will be inactive,” said Jerusalem from his training camp in Cebu City.
Collazo’s camp said that promotional issues forced the scrapping of the Jerusalem fight which he hoped would happen after he fights Haro.
Jerusalem told DAILY TRIBUNE that he had to turn down an offer to defend his title in Japan as he badly wanted a rematch with the undefeated Collazo, who stopped him in May 2023.
With Collazo and Haro squaring off, Jerusalem doesn’t have any other choice but to wait.
“That’s boxing. I guess there’s nothing that I can do but wait,” he added.