Mexican challenger Carlos Carlson declared that he would take Shinsuke Yamanaka's WBC bantamweight title belt when they square off at Ryogoku Kokugikan on Thursday evening.
The Japanese champion did not overreact in response to the challenger's bold statement, calmly saying that the emerald green-colored belt would return to the shelf at his home.
"This is a huge opportunity for me," Carlson, who is getting his first world championship shot, said through an interpreter at Tuesday's signing ceremony for the bout at a Tokyo hotel. "I'm grateful to be able to have a fight in this wonderful country. My condition is good and I'm ready to fight. This is going to be a battle between Mexico and Japan."
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