2014 Fighter of the Year: Naoya "Monster" Inoue

:good Can't wait until they've retired.

 

Have you actually looked into the case for Inoue? Regardless of whether you follow the flyweight range, look into what a vast majority of respected journalists and experts have been saying. You might want to not just write that all off, tempting as it may be to go with Crawford just because of familiarity. (which is really no different from casual/bandwagon fans who've never even heard of Crawford just blindly voting for Pacquiao...same thing, just a matter of degrees...)

 

Um...Adrian Hernandez was absolutely #1 at light fly when Inoue demolished him (as has been gone over ITT).

Narváez was absolutely the #1 at super fly the other day when Inoue demolished him.

 

I strongly disagree.

I love Bud Crawford, am excited to watch his career blossom, and think his 2014 was terrific.

In terms of résumé over 12 months Inoue beats him by a country mile.

Narváez >>> Gamboa
Hernandez > Beltran (close p4p but Hernandez was 'the man' in his division, albeit briefly, which Beltran has never been - and most importantly, was 'the man' when Inoue beat him, and in spectacular fashion)
Burns >> Basapean


Crawford's worst victory is better than Inoue's worst (and you could even argue that each man's 2nd-best is a wash), but Inoue's best is the best of their six combined wins, hands down. Even had it been a decision, it would be. The fact that it was a multiple-KD execution in two rounds - over a guy that has never been stopped (or even down? :think) - wow. Crawford just can not compete with that. I don't think anything he could have done at lightweight this year could have. No fault of his own. Inoue just made history and that can't be ****ed with. I'm perfectly happy calling Bud #2, though Kovalev is right up there with a strong case.

 

As of last April, here is the Nietes vs. Hernandez side by side breakdown:

Records at light flyweight overall

• Nietes 17-0-4 (11). Four of the wins - including one KO - and one draw were for the WBO light flyweight title, the fifth win a KO1 blowout of fringe contender Armando Vazquez in a scheduled 10-rounder.
• Hernandez 16-1 (10). Seven of the wins - five by KO - and the loss were for the WBC light flyweight title. Two of the non-title KO wins came over future world titlists in Mayol and Keb Baas.

(Hernandez's light flyweight opponents in order, asterisks by stoppages: Garibay*, Saturnino*, Mayol*, Keb Baas*, Meneses, Ochoa, Lopez, Martinez, Ramirez*, Keb Baas II*, Buthelezi*, PORPRAMOOK LOSS, Porpramook II*, Cabarca, Cardoza, Kakutani*, Rivera* ...Oswaldo Fuentes and Ivan Diaz were tuneups at flyweight between Porpramook I & II; Ortiz, Ibarra, and Villalobos were also flyweight contests and Cardenas was super flyweight)

(Nietes' light flyweight opponents in order, asterisks by stoppages: Suaybaguio, Jun de Asis, Tura*, MANGAN DRAW, Baclayo*, Alcos*, Rubillar I*, Villasis*, Costello*, Polli*, BESARES DRAW, Albia*, Muyco, SUELLO TECHNICAL DRAW, Dugang I, Narbay*, Vazquez*, Hirales, Salguero, FUENTES I DRAW, Gutierrez* ...Meendaeng was a tuneup at 112lbs, and the Fuentes rematch didn't happen until after Inoue vs. Hernandez...)


Records at light flyweight in the preceding three year period (April 2011-April 2014)

• Nietes 4-0-1 (2)
• Hernandez 7-1 (5)

April 2011 is when Nietes returned from straw to light fly, and incidentally when Hernandez won his title in Keb Baas II. Given that both were campaigning primarily at 108lbs for this entire period, it makes for a reasonable comparison sampling. Before this period, Nietes had fought tomato cans on the Filipino domestic circuit and experimented unsuccessfully with flyweight and super flyweight before establishing himself at straw from 2006 until 2010. His light flyweight competition prior to Armando Vazquez hardly bears mentioning. Neither really does much of Hernandez's prior to his title run, with the exception of Keb Baas I, green Mayol in a 6-rounder, and Ganigan Lopez via SD.

Opposition quality in-depth

• Nietes has 1 really good 108lb wins as of April 2014 - Garcia Hirales. (two good opponents faced, drawing with the better one, and that is with Fuentes coming into Nietes' home turf). The Garcia Hirales win is especially attractive around this time as he had only recently beaten Casimero and was fresh off his world title recapture in the Geles rematch. Fuentes also was coming off a very nice run at strawweight, making two defenses of the WBO title and coming directly off a career-best win over Ivan Calderon before moving up bravely to challenge for the light flyweight title in the Philippines with only half Nietes' experience. Many felt that Fuentes was unlucky. The one judge scoring for Nietes was Filipino.
• Hernandez has 6 really good 108lb wins as of April 2014 - Lopez, Keb Baas x2, Mayol, Buthelezi (only man to date to ever beat Hekkie Budler), and Porpramook in the rematch. The loss to Porpramook was a FOTY candidate in 2011 and most observers felt the intense heat in Bangkok - where it routinely can reach higher than 90° even in December (today's high was 88° - contrast with a high of 67° and low of 45° in Hernandez's home state of Toluca) - was a major contributing factor to Hernandez succumbing, to overheating and exhaustion as much as Porpramook's punches. Hernandez dominated the rematch in Toluca, winning every minute of every round and dropping Porpramook hard in rounds 3 and 6.

 

http://www.boxingforum24.com/showthread.php?p=16123831#post16123831

...oh and as of April, TBRB did have Hernandez #1...