Watch Inoue vs Doheny live on ESPN+ at 5:45 a.m: The official weights are in for tomorrow’s super bantamweight clash that will take place at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan. Unified 122-pound champion Naoya Inoue even tipped in at 122 pounds; this is the heaviest of his career, if it means anything. Australian-based Irishman TJ Doheny was a fraction lighter at 121.5 pounds.
A sell-out crowd of fans will be on hand tomorrow, expecting to see their hero, “The Monster,” do a job on Doheny, a big underdog. Inoue, perfect at 27-0(24) and for many the reigning, mythical pound-for-pound king, did, of course, hit the canvas in his last fight, in May, when Luis Nery caused a brief sensation early courtesy of his left hook. Doheny, 26-4(20) and never stopped, is a southpaw like Nery, and the knockdown Inoue suffered has given Doheny some additional confidence.
However, Inoue critics are unhappy with tomorrow’s fight, saying that the 31-year-old Hall of Famer could and should be fighting someone more elite, deserving, and dangerous. But who is out there to test Inoue? Many fans want to see Inoue move up to the featherweight division, which he says he may well do in time.
But for now, comes the focused and determined Doheny. Can the former IBF champ at 122 pounds cause an even bigger – huger – sensation and defeat Inoue? It would rank right up there with the biggest, most shocking upsets in boxing history, that’s for sure.
Instead, look for Inoue to figure his man out as he always does before closing the show inside five rounds. Inoue will become the first man to stop Doheny.
On the undercard tomorrow, Yoshiko Takei will defend his WBO bantamweight title against Daigo Higa. Both men made weight today, each coming in a fraction below the 118-pound limit. And Ismael Barroso will defend his WBA interim belt at 140 pounds against Andy Hiraoka. Both men tipped in at the 140-pound limit exactly.
We could see some good KO action in Tokyo in a few hours.
