SOUTH African Zolani Tete (25-3, 20 KOs) came out to be a better fighter when he outsmarted WBO Asia Pacific bantamweight champion "King" Arthur Villanueva (30-2, 16 KOs) via unanimous decision to win the WBO Interim World bantamweight title over the weekend in Manchester, England.
Two judges favored Tete, 119-108 each, while the third had it 120-107. The South African champion is now under British promoter Frank Warren.
Villanueva, who suffered his second career loss, had some hard times in the early rounds and have to deal with a cut from an accidental head-butt.
Tete, on the other hand, maximized his speed and counterpunching ability on Villanueva's head and body.
Despite the defeat, Bago City-native Villanueva thanked everyone who prayed for him and supported his fight.
"I tried my best to win the fight," he said.
Meanwhile, the fight was originally scheduled as an eliminator to determine the mandatory challenger for then WBO bantamweight champion Marlon Tapales.
However, the Filipino titlist was stripped of the title after missing weight prior to his defense against Shohei Omori in Japan. (HGD)