Donie Nietes is going for a rematch against the Japanese boxer Kauzto Ioka for the WBO junior bantamweight championship belt at the Ota City General Gymnasium in Japan on July 13. It was announced recently that the boxer from the Philippines is looking to get back the title he had given up soon after the match four years ago. Nietes has more than 22 knockouts to his name in his professional career. He vanquished the Japanese boxer through a split decision in their first match four years ago. He then went on to get the vacant WBO world super flyweight championship belt. Nietes vacated the championship belt and went on a nearly four-year hiatus. This allowed Ioka to get the world championship belt. Nietes is coming from a drawn match against Norbelto Jimenez in his previous fight last year. Ioka is on a winning streak of more than four matches since losing to Nietes and presently has a record of more than 27 victories with more than 14 knockouts.
Nietes has now reached the ripe age of 40. He has a professional boxing record of more than 42 wins and only six losses, including more than 22 knockout victories. He got back to the ring more than a year ago by defeating Pablo Carill by unanimous decision. But he settled for a draw against Norbelto Jimenez last year. Ioka has won more than four consecutive matches since being defeated by Nietes. In December last year, he also defeated his fellow Japanese boxer, Ryouji Fukunaga. The Ioka vs. Nietes match will be promoted by Sankyo Lifetime Boxing Fights.
Nietes said, “This was the fight I wanted the most, and I am incredibly eager to win back my world title. I have been in training since February for this fight, but I really stepped up my levels when I knew it was confirmed. This rematch makes me excited, and when I vacated the title in 2018, it was always in my mind that I would, one day, win it back. On July 13, that dream will become a reality.” Richard Schaefer, President of Probellum, said, “Donnie is a boxing legend and a sure-fire Hall of Fame inductee in the future. But his career is far from over. There is plenty left in the tank. When he travels to Japan and rips the world title from Kazuto Ioka on July 13, it will rank as the greatest victory of his remarkable career. It would be a story for Nietes to recapture the title he first won almost four years ago, and achieving that is a great champion’s backyard would make it even more special.”
The boxing fans out there are waiting for the Ioka vs. Nietes match. This is because Donnie Nietes is a multi-division world champ. Kazuto Ioka is the present WBO Super flyweight titleholder. The promoters officially announced the match at the start of June this year. Now Nietes seeks to challenge Ioka for the WBO super flyweight championship belt at the latter’s home nation of Japan. As mentioned earlier, Nietes defeated Ioka for the vacant WBO super flyweight championship belt by split decision. After his victory against Ioka, Nietes was going to defend his championship title against fellow boxer Pinoy Aston Palicte in a rematch. But he did not want to go against Palicte again. He decided to give away his championship title with the hopes of getting a match against the best boxers in the division. This includes Roman Gonzalez, Juan Francisco Estrada, and Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. But it turned out to be an incorrect decision because he was not able to get the stars of that weight division and was left hanging without any match.
Nietes had a resurgence in his boxing career and had a great return to the sport in the previous year after a gap of nearly four years. He completely dominated Pablo Carillo and won against him through a unanimous decision. He then went against the world-ranked Norbelot Jimenez, and the match finished in a split draw. The boxer may now be at the fag end of his professional boxing career because he has turned forty years old. But the president of the promotion of the Ioka vs. Nietes match thinks that he has a lot left in him at this moment. Since their initial match, Ioka has obtained victory in the next several matches. He defeated Palicte in the final rounds to get the vacant WBO championship title. He was successful in defending his championship belt more than three times against Ryoji Fukunaga, Francisco Rodriguez Jr., Kosei Tanaka, and Jeyvier Clintron.
|
Kazuto Ioka |
Donnie Nietes |
|
|
Country |
Japan |
Philippines |
|
Age |
33 years |
40 years |
|
Pro |
13 years |
19 years |
|
Height |
5′ 5″ (165 cm) |
5′ 3″ (160 cm) |
|
Reach |
66½″ (169 cm) |
65½″ (166 cm) |
|
Division |
super flyweight |
super flyweight |
|
Stance |
|
|
|
Titles |
|
- |
|
Record |
28 - 2 - 0 |
43 - 1 - 6 |
|
KOs |
53% |
53% |
|
Inactive |
194 days |
214 days |
|
Division |
Fighter #1 |
Fighter #2 |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
super flyweight (115 lbs) |
Kazuto Ioka |
Donnie Nietes |
For WBO World tit. |
Nietes is a former multi-weight champ. He obtained championship belts at flyweight, light, and minimum weight. He is looking to show his mastery against Ioka. He defeated the latter through a split decision in their first match nearly four years ago. Meanwhile, Ioka will be looking to defend his belt at any cost. The Ioka vs. Nietes match is surely going to be very interesting for the fans and the experts alike.