Jorge Linares, the reigning RING and WBA lightweight champion, and challenger Anthony Crolla both weighed in at 134.4 pounds for their eagerly anticipated rematch which takes place at the Manchester Arena in England on Saturday.

Last September, Linares scored an impressive 12-round unanimous decision over Crolla and will be looking for a repeat performance at the exact same venue. The talented Venezuelan is now a four-time world titleholder in three different divisions.

Crolla, the former WBA lightweight titleholder, stopped Darleys Perez in five rounds with a shuddering body shot to win his belt in November 2015. He defended once successfully against the previously unbeaten Ismael Barroso before running into Linares.

“I’m looking to keep these belts in Manchester,” said Crolla, when interviewed by Sky Sports News HQ in the U.K. “I feel brilliant. I’m in a great place physically and mentally. I put faith in the game plan (trainer) Joe (Gallagher) has come up with. The hard work is done and I’m ready to do the job tomorrow night. I will put on a career-best performance.”

Linares and Crolla were all smiles and there was plenty of respect. The pair looked to be in fantastic fighting shape.

Tom Gray is a UK Correspondent/ Editor for RingTV.com and a member of THE RING ratings panel.  Follow him on Twitter: @Tom_Gray_Boxing

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