Fernando “Pumita” Martinez was in a far more jovial mood Saturday than he had been during his previous fight week in Tokyo.

The unbeaten WBA junior bantamweight titlist is fully healthy this time around. More importantly, he did not at all struggle to make weight ahead of his anticipated rematch with former four-division titleholder Kazuto Ioka.

Both boxers weighed 114½lbs, well within the 115lbs divisional limit for their scheduled 12-round sequel. ABEMA-TV will air their title fight this Sunday from Ota-City General Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan. 

The venue was due to host this very matchup last New Year’s Eve, but the fight fell apart less than 48 hours ahead of fight night. Argentina’s Martinez, 17-0 (9 KOs), didn’t even make it to the scales, as he withdrew hours before the ceremony – to the chagrin of a dejected Ioka, 31-3-1 (16 KOs).

It was hardly a surprise, as Martinez skipped every fight-week function due to illness. There was speculation that he struggled to make weight at the time, though he provided the WBA and the Japanese Boxing Commission with the necessary medical documentation to disprove that theory. 

All told, it will now be 10 months after their sensational first fight last July 7 at Ryogoku Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo. Martinez won via unanimous decision to unify the IBF and WBA titles. 

A decision to move forward with the rematch cost Martinez his IBF belt, which he had held since February 2022. He was due to face then-mandatory challenger Willibaldo Garcia, 22-5-3 (13 KOs), but instead opted for the more lucrative second fight with Ioka. 

Even with the five-month delay, the rematch will now take place before the IBF vacancy is filled. Garcia fought to a 12-round draw with Rene Calixto last December 21 in Shikuoka, Japan. As previously reported by BoxingScene, the two are due to meet on May 23 in Zacatecas, Mexico.

With that, Martinez will now attempt the first defense of his WBA belt. 

Ioka previously held that belt from his June 2023 rematch win over Joshua Franco through last summer’s classic encounter with Martinez. Similarly, his pursuit of the WBA belt resulted in the end of his WBO 115lbs title reign; he and Franco fought to a draw in their New Year’s Eve 2022 unification bout. 

A win on that night would have seen Ioka become Japan’s first-ever boxer to unify titles at two separate weights. He is already the nation’s first male four-division titleholder, since joined by Naoya Inoue and Kosei Tanaka. 

Ioka will now attempt to become a three-time junior bantamweight titlist and avenge his most recent defeat. He has also held titles at strawweight, junior flyweight and flyweight.

Neither Martinez nor Ioka have fought since their first meeting. 

Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on X and Instagram.