December 28, 2015
TOKYO, JAPAN
The weigh-in ceremony took place at the Grand Palace Hotel, where four contestants who will appear in the world title twinbill successfully passed the weigh-in. WBO junior bantam titlist Naoya Inoue tipped the beam at 115 pounds, the class limit, to 114 for WBO top contender Warlito Parenas. IBF junior flyweight ruler Javier Mendoza, Mexico, and ex-two-time world champ Akira Yaegashi both scaled in at 107.5, a three-quarter pound lighter than the limit.
The WBO officials are as follows:
referee Mike Ortega; judges Patrick Russell, Levi Martinez and Patrick Morley (all US); supervisor Luis Perez (Puerto Rico).
The IBF officials are as follows:
referee Kenny Chevalier; judges Mike Fitzgerald, Eugene Grant, Hilton Whitaker Jr.; supervisor Edward Cotton (all US).
Our special guests are the WBO president Francisco Paco Valcarcel and formerly four-time world champ Erik Morales, the manager of Javier Mendoza.
Who will survive the year-end war? Time will tell.
(12-28-2015)