The Monster Returns

Published

9 years ago

December 29, 2015

If Naoya “The Monster” Inoue (now 9-0) ever comes west it may well be as the best fighter in the world, having remained in his homeland, Japan, profiting hugely from a regional scene in no need of American dollars to burnish the local gold, or it may be in search of the world’s greatest fighter, Roman Gonzalez; it’s all a question of ambition and how much this twenty-two year old has. Yes, Inoue is now twenty-two, no longer the youth I first wrote about but nor is he thirty-something like his generational (if not literal) pound-for-pound peers, Gennady Golovkin and Sergey Kovalev. While those men can likely count the remainder of their primes in months, Inoue’s could legitimately last another ten years. Nevertheless, he has already found the impetus to dust off not one, but two divisional number ones, light-flyweight Adrian Hernandez and super-flyweight Omar Narvaez. Against both he was utterly dominant and both his enormously experienced opponents were utterly bewildered. Like Roman Gonzalez, Inoue leaves even the best fighters available to him in a broken mess.

Still, a year out with injury can do strange things to a fighter especially one at Inoue’s age who is trying to make a weight as demanding as 115lbs, so it is understandable that Inoue had broken with recent habits and picked out a fighter of limited ability for the first defence of the bauble he won against Narvaez, fought today in Tokyo, Japan. A Filipino, Warlito Parrenas (24-7-1) could be counted upon to provide all the heart associated with boxers of his race but none of the apparent danger associated with warriors like Hernandez and Narvaez. But despite Parrenas’s brutal thirty second loss to Oscar Blanquetin June of 2012, Parrenas in fact appeared to pose some interesting questions. Big at the weight, he is also known for his heavy hands and since that 2012 disaster he has gone 7-0-1 with five knockouts.

The draw was a split, and came against Mexican David Carmona, who enjoyed home advantage. Had he won, Parrenas would have been in possession of one of the belts the WBO fire out of their headquarters like dollars from an ATM, but far more importantly the performance marked him out as an insistent, persistent stalker who was capable of checking Inoue’s unchecked chin and armed with just enough crazy to make it happen.

For all that, he has shown a vulnerability to accuracy and work-rate and Inoue has armies of both. He boxed the first with the same fluidity he had shown against Narvaez almost a year ago to the day, bubbling his way happily through a round that might as well have been sparring. Parrenas ate some hellacious shots but “Wars Cowboys” grinned sickly through the punishment as he attempted to find Inoue’s body with his sinister stalk. Inoue appeared to be enjoying himself, punctuating traditional one-twos with a beautiful left uppercut, an absurd punch that he happily doubled up on when the opportunity presented itself. I know of no fighter aside from Roman Gonzalez capable of finding this kind of variety so early in a contest. Ring rust? He looked like he had never been away.

A patience and maturity that bellies his tender years has always been a facet of Inoue’s game that has impressed me a great deal so what occurred in the first minute of the second round should not be misunderstood. Inoue did not press, he did not rush, he just continued to take the opportunities an out-classed opponent continued to present. Inoue was not chin-checked; Inoue was not made uncomfortable by his big pressure-opponent; nor was his unquenchable, flowing style compromised in any way shape or form. Rather he combined two the left-hook and right hand over the top to tear Parrenas’s legs from under him. The Filipino wasn’t smiling any more but rather attempting to gather his disobeying body to himself as the referee counted over him. Gaining his feet he leaned back to the ropes, throwing his right hand over the top strand like a man waiting casually for the bus while his face opened in apparent disbelief as he realised the referee was going to allow the contest to continue. His attention turned immediately to Inoue, who, terrifyingly, had taken up an old-fashioned sprinter’s stance, awaiting the referee’s signal for him to deploy the most disciplined mayhem upon his opponent’s broken spirit this side of Roman Gonzalez.

It was no surprise when Parrena was barrelled to the canvas, the fight waved off with round two just over a minute old.

Inoue finds five punch combinations the way other fighters find jabs. I wanted to see him get hit today, but apart from a slapping right hand from a desperate opponent flailing in the final seconds of his demise, this did not happen. So we still don’t know what we don’t know; what we do know is that only the very best fighters are going to be capable of living with him long enough while remaining competitive to test him. Functionally faster than I have ever seen him, Inoue looked comfortable at this weight, the drawn look that accompanied his ring-walk at 108lbs gone, perhaps forever. Stories of Inoue moving up to bantamweight imminently may yet prove insubstantial.

After the fight, Inoue declared himself interested in “strong opponents” and “unifications.” If he elects to stay in Japan, I suspect they will line up fellow strap-holder, the unbeaten Carlos Cuadras. This would be my preference as a meeting between the clear #1 and #2 in the division would crown a new lineal champion, and might – might – also see Inoue legitimately tested. Should he elect instead to leave his homeland for America, it will likely to be dispatch once more Omar Narvaez, the former super-fly #1 who is supposedly, inexplicably, interested in pursuing a rematch. That fight would be with a view to matching Roman Gonzalez either in Japan, or more likely, in the US, possibly as early as the end of 2016. It seems absurd to be even talking about a fighter with nine fights worth of experience taking on Gonzalez but in this sense if in no other, time is not on Inoue’s side. A big superfly, he may already be too large for the flyweight champion with all the complexities of a negotiated catch weight potentially in the offing. It is hard to imagine Gonzalez following Inoue up as far as 118lbs.

That said, while Inoue-Gonzalez is among the best fights in boxing, nor is it one either man necessarily needs. Gonzalez is making serious money for a flyweight in his continued wooing of American television and Inoue could retire a millionaire without ever leaving his native Japan.

One suspects, though, that these two men have business. After all, there can’t be two best fighters in the world, can there?

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Matt McGrain

Najee Lopez Steps up in Class and Wins Impressively at Plant City

Published

19 hours ago

January 24, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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Garry Jonas’ ProBox series returned to its regular home in Plant City, Florida, tonight with a card topped by a 10-round light heavyweight match between fast-rising Najee Lopez and former world title challenger Lenin Castillo. This was considered a step-up fight for the 25-year-old Lopez, an Atlanta-born-fighter of Puerto Rican heritage. Although the 36-year-old Castillo had lost two of his last three heading in, he had gone the distance with Dimitry Bivol and Marcus Browne and been stopped only once (by Callum Smith).

Lopez landed the cleaner punches throughout. Although Castillo seemed unfazed during the first half of the fight, he returned to his corner at the end of round five exhibiting signs of a fractured jaw.

In the next round, Lopez cornered him against the ropes and knocked him through the ropes with a left-right combination. Referee Emil Lombardo could have stopped the fight right there, but he allowed the courageous Castillo to carry on for a bit longer, finally stopping the fight as Castillo’s corner and a Florida commissioner were signaling that it was over.

The official time was 2:36 of round six. Bigger fights await the talented Lopez who improved to 13-0 with his tenth win inside the distance. Castillo declined to 25-7-1.

Co-Feature

In a stinker of a heavyweight fight, Stanley Wright, a paunchy, 34-year-old North Carolina journeyman, scored a big upset with a 10-round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Jeremiah Milton.

Wright carried 280 pounds, 100 pounds more than in his pro debut 11 years ago. Although he was undefeated (13-0, 11 KOs), he had never defeated an opponent with a winning record and his last four opponents were a miserable 19-48-2. Moreover, he took the fight on short notice.

What Wright had going for him was fast hands and, in the opening round, he put Milton on the canvas with a straight right hand. From that point, Milton fought tentatively and Wright, looking fatigued as early as the fourth round, fought only in spurts. It seemed doubtful that he could last the distance, but Milton, the subject of a 2021 profile in these pages, was wary of Wright’s power and unable to capitalize. “It’s almost as if Milton is afraid to win,” said ringside commentator Chris Algieri during the ninth stanza when the bout had devolved into a hugfest.

The judges had it 96-93 and 97-92 twice for the victorious Wright who boosted his record to 14-0 without improving his stature.

Also

In the TV opener, a 10-round contest in the junior middleweight division, Najee Lopez stablemate Darrelle Valsaint (12-0, 10 KOs) scored his career-best win with a second-round knockout of 35-year-old Dutch globetrotter Stephen Danyo (23-7-3).

A native Floridian of Haitian descent, the 22-year-old Valsaint was making his eighth start in Plant City. He rocked Danyo with a chopping right hand high on the temple and then, as Danyo slumped forward, applied the exclamation point, a short left uppercut. The official time was 2:17 of round two.

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Japanese Superstar Naoya Inoue is Headed to Vegas after KOing Ye Joon Kim

Published

1 day ago

January 24, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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Japan’s magnificent Naoya Inoue, appearing in his twenty-fourth title fight, scored his 11^th straight stoppage tonight while successfully defending his unified super bantamweight title, advancing his record to 29-0 (26 KOs) at the expense of Ye Joon Kim. The match at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena came to an end at the 2:25 mark of round four when U.S. referee Mark Nelson tolled “10” over the brave but overmatched Korean.

Kim, raised in a Seoul orphanage, had a few good moments, but the “Monster” found his rhythm in the third round, leaving Kim with a purplish welt under his left eye. In the next frame, he brought the match to a conclusion, staggering the Korean with a left and then finishing matters with an overhand right that put Kim on the seat of his pants, dazed and wincing in pain.

Kim, who brought a 21-2-2 record, took the fight on 10 days’ notice, replacing Australia’s Sam Goodman who suffered an eye injury in sparring that never healed properly, forcing him to withdraw twice.

Co-promoter Bob Arum, who was in the building, announced that Inoue’s next fight would happen in Las Vegas in the Spring. Speculation centers on Mexico City’s Alan Picasso (31-0-1, 17 KOs) who is ranked #1 by the WBC. However, there’s also speculation that the 31-year-old Inoue may move up to featherweight and seek to win a title in a fifth weight class, in which case a potential opponent is Brandon Figueroa should he defeat former Inoue foe Stephen Fulton next weekend. In “olden days,” this notion would have been dismissed as the Japanese superstar and Figueroa have different promoters, but the arrival of Turki Alalshikh, the sport’s Daddy Warbucks, has changed the dynamic. Tonight, Naoya Inoue made his first start as a brand ambassador for Riyadh Season.

Simmering on the backburner is a megafight with countryman Junto Nakatani, an easy fight to make as Arum has ties to both. However, the powers-that-be would prefer more “marination.”

Inoue has appeared twice in Las Vegas, scoring a seventh-round stoppage of Jason Moloney in October of 2020 at the MGM Bubble and a third-round stoppage of Michael Dasmarinas at the Virgin Hotels in June of 2021.

Semi-wind-up

In a 12-round bout for a regional welterweight title, Jin Sasaki improved to 19-1-1 (17) with a unanimous decision over Shoki Sakai (29-15-3). The scores were 118-110, 117-111, and 116-112.

Also

In a bout in which both contestants were on the canvas, Toshiki Shimomachi (20-1-3) edged out Misaki Hirano (11-2), winning a majority decision. A 28-year-old Osaka southpaw with a fan-friendly style, the lanky Shimomachi, unbeaten in his last 22 starts, competes as a super bantamweight. A match with Inoue may be in his future.

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Eric Priest Wins Handily on Thursday’s Golden Boy card at the Commerce Casino

Published

1 day ago

January 24, 2025

David A. Avila

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Model turned fighter Eric Priest jabbed and jolted his way into the super middleweight rankings with a shutout decision win over veteran Tyler Howard on Thursday.

In his first main event Priest (15-0, 8 KOs) proved ready for contender status by defusing every attack Tennessee’s Howard (20-3, 11 KOs) could muster at Commerce Casino, the second fight in six days at the LA County venue.

All ticket monies collected on the Folden Boy Promotions card were contributed to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation as they battle wildfires sprouting all over Los Angeles County due to high winds.

Priest, 26, had never fought anyone near Howard’s caliber but used a ramrod jab to keep the veteran off-balance and unable to muster a forceful counter-attack. Round after round the Korean-American fighter pumped left jabs while circling his opposition.

Though hit with power shots, none seemed to faze Howard but his own blows were unable to put a dent in Priest. After 10 rounds of the same repetitive action all three judges scored the fight 100-90 for Priest who now wins a regional super middleweight title.

Priest also joins the top 15 rankings of the WBA organization.

In a fight between evenly matched middleweights, Jordan Panthen (11-0, 9 KOs) remained undefeated after 10 rounds versus DeAundre Pettus (12-4, 7 KOs). Though equally skilled, Panthen simply out-worked the South Caroliina fighter to win by unanimous decision. No knockdowns were scored.

Other Bouts

Grant Flores (8-0, 6 KOs) knocked out Costa Rica’s David Lobo Ramirez (17-4, 12 KOs) with two successive right uppercuts at 2:59 of the second round of the super welterweight fight.

Cayden Griffith (3-0, 3 KOs) used a left hook to the body to stop Mark Misiura at 1:43 of the second round in a super welterweight bout.

Jordan Fuentes (3-0) floored Brandon Badillo (0-3-1) in the third round and proceeded to win by decision after four rounds in a super bantamweight fight.

A super featherweight match saw Leonardo Sanchez (8-0) win by decision over Joseph Cruz Brown (10-12) after six rounds.

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy

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