ESPN+/FujiTV: Teraji Kenshiro vs. Ganigan López II & Jamie McDonnell vs. Naoya Inoue RBR

López won the first on jabs, seemed like it was going to settle in for a nice 12-round chess match where you'd expect the younger guy with the fuller gas tank would come on by the 2nd half, but then BOOM. Gut shot.

 

Takuma Inoue vs. Waldo Sabu, 10 rounds @ super bantamweight

 

Round 1

Inoue keeps up a high guard as Sabu launches some WILD unorthodox offense at him from a low crouch, upper body swinging freely to either side in between his roundhouse & overhand blows, often delivered blind with his face pointed downward, trusting in the divine to guide his aim. Inoue just keeps turning him like a dial, cruising laterally at medium-long range, scoring counter jabs on the face after feinting a few times while locating it. Shoveling underhanded right on the rib cage and BIG LEFT RIP ON THE LIVER BY INOUE IN ULTRA-FAST COMBINATION AFTER CIRCLING INTO POSITION A LITTLE FASTER THAN SABU CAN TWIRL AROUND TO FACE HIM, AND THAT'LL DO IT! Sabu down, cursing his choice of line of work and swallowing down blood & bile...

KO1!!

 

I did, just watching that.

 

Random fight of Naoya's being shown now.

 

El Confesor, didn't recognize him. Forgot how old he looked in this one.

 

Underrated W for Naoya, though, regardless of Hernández looking grandfatherly in the face and not being the fittest of his career. He was still on a fine run of form at that point, knocking ranked suckers out left & right, and Inoue for the most part dominated him while still an utter novice. He captured the Japanese title in his 4th, then Oriental & Pacific in his 5th, and then first world title from Hernández in his 6th pro bout. That's crazy, bruh.