Martinez withdraws from Ioka rematch with illness

A bout of influenza has forced Fernando “Pumita” Martinez out of his year-end rematch with Kazuto Ioka

Japan has lost yet another year-end title fight, as WBA super flyweight champion Fernando Martinez’s manager announced that his charge is out of tomorrow’s rematch with Kazuto Ioka due to influenza.

Though unwelcome, the news isn’t particularly surprising. “Pumita” (17-0, 9 KO) cancelled all of his media obligations in the last few days due to a 100-degree fever, and while I’m sure he did everything in his power to make it to fight night, Ioka (31-3-1, 16 KO) isn’t someone to face when your own body is rebelling.

It’s been a rough month for Japan’s suite of champions; a cut to Sam Goodman pushed his clash with Naoya Inoue to January, after which Yoshiki Takei withdrew from the co-feature after injuring his shoulder. As Twitter’s Tokkeru points out, it’s also another blow to a fractured super flyweight division that just saw Willibaldo Garcia and Rene Calixto fail to crown an IBF champion.

We’ll let you know when and if they put this one back together.