Yudai Shigeoka Retaliates With Points Against Samuel Salva; Kenbun Torres Shocks KJ Cataraja
Yudai Shigeoka is back in the win column but not at the level of dominance he enjoyed.
The former WBC strawweight champion bounced back from his first loss with a unanimous decision win over Samuel Salva of the Philippines. The scores were 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94 for Shigeoka in their ABEMA-TV televised ten-round match on Saturday at the Yamato Arena in Suita, Osaka, Japan.
Shigeoka (9-1, 5 knockouts) fought for the first time since his stunning loss to Melvin Jerusalem on March 31. It was a home run; his younger brother Ginjiro Shigeoka lost his IBF title to Pedro Taduran last month in Otsu.
Salva—whose lone defeat came against Taduran—went to Japan as a hero who forgot the script. The visiting Filipino opened with a bang as he landed straight right hands on an off-guard Shigeoka. There was an uneasy tone, as Shigeoka was forced to put in the work to finally move forward.
Shigeoka, The Ring's No. 5-rated strawweight, found a home for his left hand to the body. Salva took the shot well, defying a scouting report that suggested it would be his undoing.
Two-way trade was more common in the second half of the war. Salva surprised Shigeoka briefly in the seventh round but the threat of a knockout quickly dissipated. Shigeoka landed his right hook on top and his left hand over the top. The 26-year-old southpaw fought off a Salva rally early in the tenth to close out the round and fight hard.
Salva (20-2, 13 KOs) is on a three-fight win streak but has been brave in defeat.
Shigeoka held the full version of the WBC strawweight title for less than six months. He won the interim title last April and was promoted when he knocked out Panya Pradabsri (43-2, 27 KOs) last October. Ginjiro won his IBF title at the same event.
Also on the show, Kenbun Torres pulled off his second straight upset against the WBO No. 1 contender. 1.
This time, undefeated KJ Cataraja (17-1, 13 KOs) was eliminated as Osaka's Torres (15-5, 10 KOs) claimed a split decision win. Cataraja was fighting No. 1 in the WBO 115-pound rankings against Kosei Tanaka (20-1, 11 KOs).
Torres previously knocked out Reymart Gaballo, then WBO's No. 1 bantamweight, in the first round on May 10 in Pasay City, Philippines.
Both bouts are shown on the undercard of the Lerato Dlamini-Tomoki Kameda rematch.
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