NONITO Donaire Jr. dressed and act like a samurai during the presser for his title eliminator bout against Riku Masuda on Sunday.
He’s looking to flaunt that very same mindset come fight night.
The 43-year-old Filipino Flash tangles with Masuda in a 10-round bantamweight match in Yokohama, Japan, with the winner earning the right to face reigning WBA champion Seiya Tsutsumi.
The two fighters didn’t have a hard time making the 118-pound limit as Donaire and Masuda both came in at 117.8 pounds.
Donaire is looking to use the bout as a springboard for another crack at Tsutsumi’s crown.
The two previously tangled in December last year which saw the Japanese champion pulling off a split decision against Donaire to retain his title in Tokyo, Japan.
While Donaire lost the fight, he did enough damage against Tsutsumi, who suffered a facial fracture and eye injury following the brutal match that saw the reigning champion rally in the second half to pull off the close decision.
That same injuries caused the 30-year-old Tsutsumi to pull out from his April 11 title defense against Antonio Vargas.
While a rematch with Tsutsumi is the major goal, Donaire (43-9, 28 KOs) has the greatest respect for Masuda and is not looking past his Japanese foe.
“It is not that I do not respect Masuda, but I am currently focused on what I need to do, so I am not thinking much about him,” said the Filipino.
Masuda, 15 years younger than Donaire, sports a 9-1 record with eight of them coming by way of knockouts.
His lone loss incidentally, was inflicted by Tsutsumi, who defeated him via unanimous decision in their 10-round bout in August of 2023 held at the famed Korakuen Hall.
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