Top Rank on ESPN: Naoya Inoue vs. Luis Esteban Nery Hernández & Masago Akui vs. Taku Kuwahara II RBR

1時間のトップ（今から12時間後) !!!

Main card world title quadruple-header broadcast on ESPN+ kicks off at 4am EST. Main event ring walks are being reported for wildly different times ranging from 6am to 7:35am EST depending on the outlet* - personally, I'd err on the side of trusting most conservative ones and setting alarms for as early as possible.

* supposedly a Top Rank official leaked the 7:35 estimate, but it's worth noting that Inoue vs. Tapales was pretty much six on the dot

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...how's that for a clarion roll-call?

 

Additional international coverage:

Australia - Foxtel
Canada - TSN+
Japan - Prime Video
UK - Sky Sports Arena / Main Event / GO

 

Nope, it's exactly the right time.

I like synchronicitous milestones, and 4pm EST mirroring the broadcast start time of 4am makes a lot more sense than arbitrarily making it any other postmeridian time on Sunday before the stroke of midnight (by which time I'm going to be long asleep, to hopefully catch most if not all of the undercard).

Besides, this gives plenty of time for everyone to purge all the last-minute post-weigh-in banter and debate from their systems now, so when the first bell rings all the focus can be on the action.

 

IMPORTANT NOTE

This has been reported in some places as being on both the channel ESPN on television, as well as ESPN+. Only the latter is true. None of the broadcast channels under ESPN's umbrella have any boxing coverage listed tomorrow whatsoever:
https://www.tvguide.com/listings/

 

I've also seen very different lineups announced, with all three supporting championship bouts listed in every possible order - but I'm fairly confident that Akui vs. Kuwuhara II actually does occupy the co-main slot over Jason Moloney vs. Yoshiki Takei and Takuma Inoue vs. Takumi "Shō" Ishida - but we of course shall have to wait and see.

Annoyingly, there's been no definitive running order published as of yet by TR.

 

These were Yamanaka's thoughts after the weigh in:

https://hochi.news/articles/20240505-OHT1T51306.html?page=1

"I watched Neri's weigh-in with a special feeling. I wonder if he will repeat the same mistake he made when he faced me for the second time six years ago (March 2018), but that was not the case. The WBC has required him to weigh in before the match many times, and this time he passed comfortably. Judging by the expression on his face, his condition seems to be good.

　However, I feel that being 500g under the limit (55.3kg) is more than necessary. In preparation for the match against Naoya, he probably went through a five-month training camp and gradually reduced his weight, rather than suddenly. A strong body that can withstand weight loss = strong stomach and intestines. When a boxer reaches the world level, even if he loses weight somewhat unreasonably, his weight will quickly increase by passing the weigh-in and eating meals. If your stomach and intestines are strong, your body will recover quickly when you eat. Up until now, Neri seems to have lost weight by dropping it right before a match.

　This time I lost weight little by little, and my condition may be good, but there is one pitfall. The body is true, and if you gradually lose weight, it will take time to regain it. Not to mention it's 500g under the limit. The difference with Naoya is 400 grams. You might think it's only 400 grams, but 400 grams for a lightweight boxer is quite a lot. From there, how big can you get into the ring? In my case, I stood in the ring with about 4 kg more weight than my limit (53.5 kg), but the difference in weight is directly related to my endurance against the opponent's punches. Considering that point, I feel like Naoya has a better advantage.

　Neri has said that she will take on the challenge with determination, so she will probably be there from the first time. Even Naoya needs to be careful about the fast-spinning left and right hooks, but at that time his body becomes completely empty. I want you to think about Naoya's past matches. The punches that were the key points of the match at key points were body blows. There is a clear difference between the two in terms of the number of punches received and the timing of the punches. According to my analysis, Naoya has an 8-2 advantage. It wouldn't be strange if it ended in any inning from the first to the middle of the inning."