Naoya Inoue vs. Ramon Cardenas & Rafael Espinoza Zepeda vs. Edward Vazquez - Round by Round.

Inoue will have learnt a lot tonight. Good fight.

 

Inoue is too good and technically sound to be irresponsible, I think he just gets too excited.

That's 2 fights now, that'd be dangerous as he goes up in weight.

Mad ****ing props to Cardenas though. He wasn't viewed to be a challenge but he was.
After all the **** main events recently, glad this card delivered.

 

Inoue should've taken a knee and had his corner wipe his face with a towel.

 

Inoue absolutely buzzing and smiling on his walk back there.

 

I don't think he's declining. But he's twice now shown the same vulnerability. He get's over confident early and leaves himself open to being countered when throwing the left hook. Luckily for him he seems to be able a flush power shot counter when is a horrible position to take it and still quickly recover and get up. That might be fine at 122 but at 126 we could see him being beaten if he doesn't fix this mental lapse he has early in fights.

I think in the end it's a result of his own success, success can bring complacency. Both times he was countered and dropped he was swinging for the fences, especially so vs Nery where he was spamming right hands from the start. It may take a loss from Inoue to fix this and then we'll see just how great he is.

It's great having that 0 but how Inoue comes back from adversity, back from a loss for me will be a bigger sign of greatness.

 

Agree but the left hook and especially the timing of it from Cardenas was pure quality. I think you have to give him credit for it rather than putting it solely down to Inoue getting careless.

Inoue’s adjustments through the rounds was class though. He eventually totally nullified the left hook.

Cerebral boxing.

 

Gotta give Bradley credit for actually being accurate with his observation regarding Inoue’s flaws. He actually called it right.

 

since we are talking about smaller guys, Bam is on a KO streak and has been real fun to watch because he’s so aggressive. Just saying, Inoue isn’t the only one.

 

What a great card.

The obvious difference between tonight's card and those of the last 2 days, is that EVERYONE on this card came to fight.

 

Who the Fook was this guy?

 

I think the fact he could lose at 126 is exactly why he should do it. He could stay at 122 and retire undefeated but that would be boring, safe, predictable and expected. It's what a sensible, ordinary fighter would do.

Fighter's protecting that 0 at all costs, that's not greatness that's risk adversity, which is fine if your content in being just a good fighter. But great fighters like Inoue, should be looking to go beyond what they know they can do. It's why Inoue already has plans to fight at 126.

If he loses so what, great fighters lose, Duran lost, SRR lost, Pac lost etc. Look at what Pac did after losing to Morales went on one of the best runs we have ever seen, going from a great fighter to an ATG fighter. If Inoue loses, how he comes back from that loss maybe an greater accomplishment and proof of greatness than all his wins to date. Imagine how good he would be if he lost and then levelled up?