Kazuto Ioka vs. Fernando Martinez canceled due to illness

Fans were impatiently counting down the days until the showdown between Kazuto Ioka and Fernando Martinez on New Year’s Eve in Tokyo. However, Ioka’s Shisei gym said on Monday that the Argentinian WBA superflyweight champion had come down with the flu, forcing them to cancel the much-anticipated bout at the last minute.

Martinez was already showing signs of illness when he canceled a public workout last Thursday. He also missed Sunday’s signing ceremony, which raised the alarm that something was seriously wrong. It’s a gut punch for Ioka, who was hungry for a comeback after Martinez beat him by unanimous decision in July’s WBA-IBF unification fight.

Martinez reportedly relinquished his IBF belt, skipping a mandatory title defense to make this rematch happen.