How Popular Is Naoya Inoue In Japan???

Discussion in 'World Boxing Forum' started by JOKER, Jun 29, 2022.


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  1. JOKER

    JOKER Froat rike butterfry, sting rike MFER! banned Full Member

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    Anyone know anything about Japanese sports?

    It's pretty obvious that Shohei Ohtani's is Japan's most beloved athlete, but where does Inoue rank? Is her popular? Is boxing a niche sport there?

    Is MMA bigger than boxing over there?
     
    JOKER, Jun 29, 2022
    JOKER, Jun 29, 2022
    #1
  2. turbotime

    turbotime Hall Of Famer Full Member

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    MMA is way bigger. Plus, the timezones mess with everyone over there. He's definitely big though. Name another 112 lb'er making millions.
     
    turbotime, Jun 29, 2022
    turbotime, Jun 29, 2022
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  3. JOKER

    JOKER Froat rike butterfry, sting rike MFER! banned Full Member

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    Well, I mean, like, is he second behind Ohtani? Is that dude that Floyd fought more popular? Where would you rank him?
     
    JOKER, Jun 29, 2022
    JOKER, Jun 29, 2022
    #3
  4. turbotime

    turbotime Hall Of Famer Full Member

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    Probably, I wouldn't consider him traditional Jap though. He's more American than Jap who lives off a youtube channel. There are alot of Asian athletes. Inoue is doing well.
     
    turbotime, Jun 29, 2022
    turbotime, Jun 29, 2022
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  5. JOKER

    JOKER Froat rike butterfry, sting rike MFER! banned Full Member

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    What? Mega confused.
     
    JOKER, Jun 29, 2022
    JOKER, Jun 29, 2022
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  6. turbotime

    turbotime Hall Of Famer Full Member

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    Oht did it for the payday. Compare him vs Inoue right now. Inoue is hot right now.
     
    turbotime, Jun 29, 2022
    turbotime, Jun 29, 2022
    #6
  7. RJJFan

    RJJFan Boxing Junkie banned Full Member

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    I'd say Murata had been more visible than Inoue until now. If you were watching sports shows in Japan, you'd think women's climbing is the most popular sport behind baseball.
     
    RJJFan, Jun 29, 2022
    RJJFan, Jun 29, 2022
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  8. Serge

    Serge Ginger Dracula Staff Member

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    Might possibly have changed now but Nara Ninja Murata is or was until recently if not the most popular boxer in Japan


    Veteran reporter/matchmaker/television commentator and analyst Joe Koizumi said, “Ryota Murata is truly the most well-known and popular boxer here in Japan. From the viewpoint of huge celebrity, he has had a higher status than Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue, since Murata is truly a Japanese national hero, having acquired the Olympic gold medal in London – only the second in Japanese sports history – and also gained the professional world championship.

    People need to understand what a tough SOB he is to be able to withstand as many flush bombs as he did from GGG. Most fighters would've been flat on their backs after eating nowhere near that amount

    This content is protected
     
    Serge, Jun 29, 2022
    Serge, Jun 29, 2022
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  9. jnes1

    jnes1 New Member Full Member

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    All combat sports are big in Japan.
     
    jnes1, Jun 29, 2022
    jnes1, Jun 29, 2022
    #9
  10. titanic

    titanic Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Popular Sports here ;
    Soccer, Baseball, Rugby,Tennis, Golf, K1/MMA in that order then the rest incl. Boxing....
    Inoue's last fight wasn't even shown on live TV for free...
     
    titanic, Jun 29, 2022
    titanic, Jun 29, 2022
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  11. Finkel

    Finkel Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Baseball is the Japanese national sport. So, Ohtani and Inoue are not comparable. Inoue is starting to get some traction within the general populace, but Murata probably still has more popularity.

    I asked about 60 twenty-something Japanese women (don't ask) if they knew who Inoue was the day after the rematch with Donaire. A handful knew him by name, a few more were like, oh...him, when a friend explained.

    Then again, among working males he is definitely better known, but generally those who I have spoken to who knew of him over the last few years, were generally boxing fans anyway.
     
    Last edited: Jun 30, 2022
    Finkel, Jun 30, 2022
    Finkel, Jun 30, 2022
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  12. WhataRock

    WhataRock Loyal Member Full Member

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    He is no Koki Kameda that's for sure.
     
    WhataRock, Jun 30, 2022
    WhataRock, Jun 30, 2022
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  13. JOKER

    JOKER Froat rike butterfry, sting rike MFER! banned Full Member

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    :confused:
     
    JOKER, Jun 30, 2022
    JOKER, Jun 30, 2022
    #13
  14. dcb154

    dcb154 Member Full Member

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    Oh I certainly will ask good sir! Share this secret with the rest of the class
     
    dcb154, Jun 30, 2022
    dcb154, Jun 30, 2022
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  15. JunlongXiFan

    JunlongXiFan 45-6 in Kirks Chmpionshp Boxing Predictions 2022 Full Member

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    In his home region of Kanto (which includes Tokyo) he has maxed out at 10.3% of live TV viewership. Aka 10.3% of people watching TV at the time were watching him fight, in Kanto. There are 42M people in Kanto.

    It's important to note that Hajime no Ippo and Ashita no Joe are two of Japan's biggest selling mangas, there are no comparable boxing based media that popular outside of Japan to my knowledge.
     
    JunlongXiFan, Jun 30, 2022
    JunlongXiFan, Jun 30, 2022
    #15
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