detail: May 6th this yearth From Tokyo, Tokyo Dome… Monday The main event starts at 3-4 a.m. PDT, 6-7 a.m. ET…it's Monster Inouye vs. super bantamweight Luis 'Pantera' Nery. (If you plan to watch live, be sure to check back for updates on main event ring walk times.)
background: Monster Inoue is also good friends with other monsters. You mean, Godzilla? come. That mutant dinosaur of habit, living a cozy retirement under the sea, tuned in to watch Inoue vs. Fulton (Inoue's greatest victory) and said: – Oh, I see“is that so?”
Yes, it is. Twenty-six people, mostly in Japan, entered the ring against the mild-looking Inoue, and 23 were knocked unconscious. The three survivors were also badly defeated.
I like to think I have the keenest eye in boxing and have no ego. Maybe it's because I've been watching for so many years, but I seem to know the conclusion of a boxing match right away.
Naoya resembled his glorious self to Stephen Fulton. He was the man who always defeated the monster, “exposed” him, and brought the belt back to America. A man with enough speed to negate the power of monsters. A qualified boxer from Philadelphia. That qualification is worth more than the man from Japan's impressive career.what possibility Japan Offer to boxer Philadelphia couldn't beat?
Inoue was much faster than Fulton. Fulton was very skilled, to be sure, but he was easily outpaced, outboxed, and ultimately crushed by Inoue's monstrous power. There was no aspect of his game that Inoue couldn't beat. Please be clear: Fulton had exhausted his Philadelphia privileges. Inoue ignored Fulton and his credentials.
Fulton sighs and says what he didn't do was more important than what Naoya did. Classless. Yes, Stephen. What you didn't do was remain conscious. Fulton had some awakening to the demands of sportsmanship when, upon leaving the ring, several thousand members of the Japanese crowd rose to their feet and applauded him as he left the ring. Many warm handshakes followed from the crowd, excited by Fulton's bravery. Fulton smiled at this expression of warmth, and finally softened.
Inoue then faced a more respectful and, surprisingly, much better opponent, Marlon Tapares. Fulton is extremely skilled and cannot be taken lightly. But while Tapares may not be in the textbooks, he had excellent technique of his own and much better timing. Although he ultimately succumbed to Inoue's power, he had many meaningful moments and won several rounds clearly.
My notes from the tapares scraps reflect what my “keen eye” told me. Either the 30-year-old Inoue slipped, Tapares was kryptonite, or it was just an off night for the Yokohama star. Or all three. As soon as the match was over, Inoue told Tapares, “The pieces of the puzzle weren't falling into place.” What my keen eyes saw was confirmed by the combatants.
The first thing a great fighter slips into is foot speed. My legs start to move. It happened to Ali, it happened to Mike Tyson…if they all stay together long enough, it happens to everyone. Inoue's feet against Tapares were much slower in direct comparison to his impressive form against Fulton.
Enter Luis Esteban Nelly Hernandez, a barely smiling man from Tijuana. If Inoue loses a step, it could be a deep matchup with Neri. However, Neri lost by KO. Inoue being slow again could be bad news for his future, but he'll probably still beat Neri.
Fighters grade:
Naoya Inoue: AABB B- A B+ (B+3.5)
Luis Neri: B B+ B- B- B- A B+ (B3.1)
Reality check: Neri is a strange mixed bag. Let me be clear: he's a very good fighter. Here's the good, the bad, and the weird things I've seen.
. Wing’s roundhouse punch – strange for a guy at this level. Such blows can be timed. Negative.
. Still, he manages to land a roundhouse punch and continues to fight after fight! positive.
. Move forward clumsily and sometimes poorly. Negative.
. Movement from side to side and backwards is also outstanding. positive.
. slow punch. Negative. Quick punch, positive.
. Hits too often and a strong minus.
. He occasionally displays a strong “D” and is able to absorb big blows. Strong positive.
Oddly enough, Neri showed super wide in a great fight with Hovhannisyan. strange It's a stance, but sometimes it's a narrow stance. It turns out he's a master of all stances. But changing things this often is certainly something you don't see often outside of MMA. Against Hovhannisyan, Neri fought with a different style than we've seen in years or even before, stopping an Armenian opponent who had never been stopped before, a good boxer.
The problem for Lewis is the same one that plagued Shane Moseley. Although Shane was good, he was “there to be beaten,” as a popular publication put it. The same goes for southpaw Neri. I don't think Neri can survive Inoue's fire.
The hope is that Inoue, now 31 years old, will become agile again. If his legs are starting to feel weird, he's blaming COVID for robbing him of his best moments, and it's us fans' fault. And as I've always said, it was a mistake to let Nonito Donaire, who was hobbling with a serious injury, escape due to good sportsmanship, as Inoue was badly injured and still managed to win. . I say that multiple orbital fractures can never be easily removed – certainly no doctor. (Of course, I'm talking about the first fight with Donaire.)
I don't agree with the American experts who seem to be jealous of monsters and say they suddenly have to come to America to be “recognized” as genuine pound-for-pound. Did the promoter say he would give Naoya a $30 million bag if he did? no. His popularity will increase if he comes to America again (in fact, he has fought in California and Las Vegas), but I don't think it will lead to fame like Jordan or Floyd.This is a race for the prize, and if there's an offer, he'll come. very big prize. I don't think it has anything to do with Godzilla either, but I don't know. For those wondering, will he go to featherweight? Hmm. If there was a big jump, I would say no.
Battles and predictions: For Neri, a fearless competitor with a “C” for craftsman, Inoue has too much of everything. However, I prioritize Inoue's art and talent over Neri's craftsmanship.
Naoya Inoue Lewis Nery 9-11 TKO.