By Elisinio Castillo

The rematch is signed. Jezreel Corrales' promoter, Rogelio Espino, confirmed that a contract has been signed to fight Japan's Takashi Uchiyama in a rematch on December 31 in Japan.

Back in April, Uchiyama suffered a shocking knockout defeat to Corrales - who in the process captured the WBA super featherweight title. It was a brutal second-round knockout dashing his hopes of a twelfth defence of his belt.

The 36-year-old Uchiyama, considered Japan's best pound-for-pound boxer in recent years, had never tasted defeat in his professional career -- until Corrales unleashed a violent flurry of punches to flatter the champion.

Uchiyama, who won the belt from Mexican Juan Carlos Salgado in 2010, had been looking to overhaul Yoko Gushiken's Japanese record of 13 title defences between 1976 and 1981.

But the Nagasaki-born tough guy, dubbed "Knockout Dynamite" by Japanese fans and media, was sent crashing to the canvas three times in the second round by top-ranked challenger Corrales, who put Uchiyama out of his misery with a vicious left hook.

Corrales entered the ring with a skeleton mask and the fight quickly turned into a horror story for Uchiyama, who was caught flush on the chin by the southpaw early in the first round.

Corrales knocked Uchiyama down again with a left hook at the start of the second and with the Japanese star still wobbly on his knees, the challenger clinically finished him off.

"I didn't see those punches coming," said a stunned Uchiyama. ""I hadn't even got warmed up. I tried to stay calm and fight back but then he caught me again. That's what happens in this game."

Corrales, 12 years Uchiyama's junior at 24, improved his professional record to 20 wins against one loss. Uchiyama has a record of 24 wins -- 20 of them by KO -- against one defeat and one draw.