Ronnie Baldonado (left) and Yoshiki Takei (right) strike a pose after passing the weigh-in for their 8-rounder bout in the undercard of Inoue-Fulton unification showdown. | Photo from Takei’s Facebook page
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Filipino prospect Ronnie “Lindol” Baldonado is all set for his battle against Japanese Yoshiki Takei in the undercard of the Naoya Inoue-Stephen Fulton world title unification showdown in Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday, July 25, 2023.
The 27-year-old North Cotabato native and his Japanese opponent officially passed the weigh-in on Monday, July 24, 2023.
Baldonado tipped the scales at 117.5 pounds, while Takei weighed in at 118.8lbs in their eight-rounder non-title showdown in the undercard.
This will be Baldonado’s second stint in Japan.
Baldonado, the reigning Philippine Games & Amusements Board Filipino bantamweight title holder fell short in his first fight in Japan last December 2022 against Sho Ishida at the Edion Arena in Osaka. He lost to Ishida via unanimous decision after eight rounds.
He managed to bounce back strong by winning the Philippine bantamweight title last January 2023 by defeating Ben Mananquil by unanimous decisions in Paranaque City.
He currently has 16 wins with nine knockouts, four defeats, and one draw.
Meanwhile, Takei, 27, became known in the Philippine boxing scene when he scored a fifth round technical knockout against Omega Boxing Gym’s Pete Apolinar in August 2022 in Tokyo, Japan.
His most recent bout was against Australian Bruno Tarimo where he won by an 11th round TKO to bag the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) super bantamweight title.
Takei is undefeated in six bouts with an impressive six knockouts in his young pro record.
On the other hand, Inoue weighed in at 121.7lbs while Fulton at 121.9lbs for their WBC and WBO world super bantamweight title showdown in the main event.
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