Norman vs Sasaki & Simsri vs Araneta this Thursday

I love watching Sasaki; maybe not the most cultured fighter, but he has hands of stone and brings pure violence everytime. If Norman approaches him the same way he fought Santillian I think we could have the first ever Japanese Welterweight champion.

 

Brian Norman Jr’s father declined $1.75 million dollars for his son to fight Jaron “Boots” Ennis in a unification clash to instead fight on the undercard of a female fight in a ballroom and then fight in Japan lol.

This is why these fighters need proper representation. Hopefully Norman doesn’t lose to Sasaki otherwise he’ll regret declining that payday even more.

 

Good fight, both fighters bring a lot of action to the table.

 

Really stoked for this. My head says that Norman Jr should win this clearly but Sasaki does have the power to make it interesting although I think he’s a bit one dimensional. Someone is definitely getting knocked out here. It’ll be crazy if Sasaki manages to pull it off and becomes the first Japanese WW champ.

 

Sasaki also doesn’t have much defense. It could very likely end up being like the Santillan fight. I’m not completely sold on Norman Jr yet but I just think Sasaki is too crude and predictable to win this. Still, I think both guys will be taking damage here and it should be a good fight.

 

I really like Sasaki but he's honestly not all that good. If anything, Santillan seems far better put-together and more varied in his attack, on top of being tougher. Sasaki wades into range with a static guard and head and just starts winging off huge hooks and overhands. That style can work to a certain extent when you have Sasaki's power and engine but it really shouldn't translate up to world title level. Sasaki is a sucker for the uppercut and I think Norman is a lot more compact and intelligent in his approach.

Sasaki is a fun watch and quite frankly I think that's all he needs to be. He has hordes of adoring Japanese fans who will watch him and root for him win, lose, or draw. But Sasaki is also going in there against someone who is now the world's best welter with Boots' ascent to 154, and I think Sasaki is in for a world of hurt. He will be eating jabs at mid-range, he'll get caught by uppercuts when he tries to close distance, and he'll be meeting a much better inside fighter who will grab, smother, and punch out of the clinch when Sasaki is successful enough to get close. As much as I like Sasaki, I can't look past his limitations and I can't stop myself from thinking that he's gonna get stopped again.

 

Hoping Araneta struck the gold this time

 

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