MANILA, Philippines -- Filipino boxer Carl Jammes Martin painted an upset split decision win against Mexican David Picasso to claim the World Boxing Council (WBC) silver featherweight belt at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia early Sunday in Manila.
Surviving a flash knockdown in the sixth round, Martin did just enough to sway two judges to his side at 95-94 while the other scored it 96-93 in favor of Picasso.
Scoring the biggest win of his career yet, Martin stayed undefeated at 29-0 and positioned himself closer to a world title match.
Picasso, who previously challenged and lost to Japanese Naoya Inoue for the undisputed bantamweight crown, fell to 33-2.