The Best Days for Kazuto Ioka Days Are Behind Him
The days of Kazuto Ioka (31-4-1, 16 KOs) being an elite fighter are over. As a result, it would behoove the Japanese veteran if he packed things up and called it a career. On May 11 in Tokyo, Japan, Ioka lost by unanimous decision in a rematch with reigning WBA junior bantamweight champion Fernando “Pumita” Martinez (18-0, 9 KOs).
It was all Pumita during the first half of the contest. Ioka rallied down the stretch and put Martinez down with a left hook at the midway point of round ten. However, the early points deficit was too much to overcome.
Ioka’s slow start was reminiscent of his previous fight with Martinez, which he lost by unanimous decision in July 2024. The 36-year-old doesn’t fight with energy and struggles with rugged and physical fighters. If Ioka struggles with the likes of Martinez, one could imagine how Ioka would fare against the fighter many pundits consider the best at 115 – WBC champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.
A four-division champion and one of the great fighters in the history of boxing’s lower-weight division, Ioka’s legacy is set. He’s a future Hall of Famer. Nonetheless, every fighter reaches a point where they must look inward and decide that it’s no longer worth carrying on. Ioka has reached that point.
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