Ex-IBF super bantam titlist Steve Molitor took one step closer to contending for his former belt by posting a split decision over seasoned Mexican campaigner Heriberto Ruiz last night at Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario.

Slick southpaw counter-puncher Molitor was spurred on by the 5,000 strong highly partisan audience but the experienced Los Mochis based visitor nearly pulled off the upset.

The early rounds were marked by a cautious approach by both fighters as each seemed to wait for the other man to take the lead.

Ruiz began to come forward but had trouble against Molitor's shifty defense and good footwork, absorbing sharp ripostes in the process.

As the action moved to the inside, the going turned rough as both combatants were guilty of extra-curricular activities.

In the second half of the contest, Molitor started to lead more and while he had little problem hitting Ruiz, the busier approach of "The Canadian Kid" provided more opportunities for Ruiz to find the target as well.

The championship rounds featured exciting two way action that was difficult to score as each boxer had their moments.

When all 12 rounds had run their course, Molitor had won the #2 spot in the IBF rankings by split decision, taking two of the cards on margins of 116-112 twice while Ruiz won the third card 116-112.

Molitor improves to 29-1 (11) while Ruiz goes to 41-8-2 (23).

On the undercard, southpaw Canadian heavyweight champ Grezegorz Kielsa, 10-0 (5), stopped Byron Polley, 23-10-1 (11) of America in the fourth frame of a non-title bout and undefeated American light middle Austin Trout, 18-0 (13), picked up and eight round UD over Toronto's Shawn Garnett, 11-6-2 (3), in an all-southpaw matchup.

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Boxing News Tags: Boxing Results, Heriberto Ruiz, Steve Molitor