IBF world super flyweight champion Fernando Martinez (17-0, 9 KOs) has pulled out of his rematch with former four-division world champion Kazuto Ioka (31-3-1, 15 KOs) due to a case of the flu for their previously scheduled fight on December 31.
Rematch delayed
There is no word yet on when they plan to reschedule the fight. It will of course take time for the Argentine Martin (33) to recover from his illness, but under ideal circumstances it shouldn’t be too long.
This is bad news for the fans, but perhaps a good thing for the 35-year-old Ioka, who was soundly beaten in their previous fight on July 7 in Tokyo, Japan.
Ioka will have to find the Fountain of Youth defeating Martinez in the rematch. Martinez looked very old in his loss last July. He has looked poor in recent fights over the past three years, but Martinez put a stamp on that with his one-sided victory last summer.
The scores
117-111
120-108
116-112
Given the one-sided battle, it’s almost pointless for a rematch other than for business. It wasn’t a competitive enough fight for a rematch, but from Ioka’s point of view, it’s understandable why he’d at least try to avenge the loss. He has never been hit so hard in his 15-year career.
However, his performances against Joshua Franco in 2022 and 2023 have already indicated that Ioka is nearing the end of his career. Ioka looked awful in both fights and was very lucky to escape without taking a few losses.
“Good decision by the ‘Puma’ team not to let him fight with a case of the flu. We are waiting for a decision on postponement or a decision to be made in this regard,” said Salvador Rodriguez. Xwhich is responding to the news of IBF super flyweight champion Fernando Martinez choosing not to go ahead with his rematch against Kazuto Ioka due to illness. “Champion ‘Puma’ Martinez will not fight on December 31 due to flu.”
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