Tomoki Kameda outpoints Medina to win interim 126-pound belt, eyes WBC champion Vargas

In his first fight at 122-pounds, former world champion Tomoki Kameda defeated outpointed Abigail Medina on Monday to capture the interim WBC super bantamweight world title at Korakuem Hall in Tokyo.

Two judges scored the fight 117-111, while a third had it 116-112 -- all in favor of Japan's Kameda, who previously held the WBO bantamweight title from August 2013 to November 2014.

Using his authoritative jab, Kameda dictated the pace of the fight, and held off a serious charge from Medina, a former European 122-pound titleholder, who rallied in the middle and final rounds of the bout, but it was not enough to impress the judges.

“El Mexicanito” has now won five straight since dropping back-to-back fights to former beltholder Jamie McDonnell for the WBA bantamweight title in 2015.

In four of those fights, Kameda (36-2, 20 KO's), 27, fought at the featherweight limit of 126-pounds, but came down a weight class to take on Medina.

The win puts Kameda on a path to face WBC champion, Mexican Rey Vargas, who is currently recovering from a shoulder injury, as well as a bout with pneumonia.

The unbeaten Vargas (32-0, 22 KO's), 27, is coming off a unanimous decision victory over a game Azat Hovhannisyan in May.