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Nonito Donaire and Naoya Inoue both made weight, making their 2019 Fight of the Year rematch on Tuesday official.
‘The Filipino Flash’ weighed in at 117.7 pounds while 'The Monster’ clocked in at 118 pounds.
The pair will square off at the Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, the same venue of their first fight three years ago. Donaire’s WBC Bantamweight Championship, and Inoue’s WBA, IBF and The Ring Titles will all be on the line in this title unification.
In their first meeting, the undefeated Japanese fighter was rocked early on but was able to drop the four-division champion in the eleventh round with a heavy body shot. Inoue was also able to fight through a fractured orbital bone and a broken nose during the bout, en route to a unanimous decision win.
After squaring off with Inoue before fight night, Donaire said he is “fired up” and very confident heading into the fight. In a press statement released by Probellum, he was quoted as saying:
“I feel good, I feel great. It is going to be an amazing night and you can look forward to seeing the best of me. I am very fired up and it is going to be a very exciting fight!”
Since losing to Inoue, Donaire has started a renaissance in his two-decade boxing career.
Last year, the 39-year-old defeated French-Morrocan Nordine Oubaali for the WBC Bantamweight Championship by scoring a stunning fourth-round knockout. He went on to defend his title against mandatory challenger and compatriot Reymart Gaballo and scored another fourth-round knockout in December.
Watch the weigh-in and pre-fight medicals streamed by Nonito Donaire’s camp:
Nonito Donaire eyes undisputed bantamweight title
In his illustrious pro boxing career that started in 2001, Donaire has won multiple world titles at different weights and has been a pound-for-pound entrant for years. This time around, he wants to claim everything there is in the bantamweight division.
In an interview with Probellum, the Filipino expressed confidence in achieving his ultimate boxing dream—to become an Undisputed World Champion:
“Something I have been working to do, all my career, has been to become an undisputed world champion and you will see me with those belts. It is not ‘if” I beat Inoue, it is ‘when’ I beat Inoue.”
This means that he will seek an undisputed world title bout against WBO bantamweight titleholder Paul Butler should he come out victorious in Saitama.
