Donaire vs Inoue Preview

Donaire vs Inoue Preview

By Elliott Grigg

The Super Arena, Saitama, Japan hosts the bantamweight final of World Boxing Super series on Thursday night. The hotly anticipated world fight between the WBA world super champion, Nonito Donaire (40-5) and the WBA, IBF world and bantamweight Ring champion, Naoya Inoue (18-0) will culminate the conclusion of the bantamweight weight class from within a tournament which began back in November 2018.

A tournament format which has been successfully marketed – and has indeed often delivered – on ensuring that the ‘best fight the best’, the World Boxing Super Series sees eight eminent and objectively-and-highly ranked fighters enter, who are then drawn against each other in quarterfinal bouts with the four winners proceeding into the semi-finals and then the two subsequent victors contesting the final.

Naoya Inoue has only completed one full round during both of his tournament bouts, concussively obliterating southpaw Juan Carlos Payano (21-3) 70 seconds into the first round of their quarterfinal matchup. Following on from that he stopped the previously undefeated Emmanuel Rodriguez (19-1) in the semi-final with several spiteful left hooks to the body that left the Puerta Rican fighter bent-over and shaking his head in the direction of his corner with a desperate countenance that implored both mercy and salvation.

It is worth also acknowledging that despite this being only the second round and thus still within the early stages of the fight, Rodriguez’s head contorted the distorted features of a bloodied nose and mouth, and a closed right eye.

Four-weight world champion Nonito Donaire’s route to the final has been comparatively circuitous. A route which has been complicated by fighter injuries and withdrawals, and the thus consequent and unexpected inclusion of a change in semi-final opponent.

Coming into the tournament having conceded a unanimous decision loss to two-time and two-weight world champion Carl Frampton (26-2), Donaire challenged WBA super world bantamweight champion Ryan Burnett (20-1) in the quarterfinals, fortuitously winning the title via Burnett’s lamentable retirement through a back injury at the end of the fourth round.

His reward was due to be a semi-final world title shot against WBO champion, Zolani Tete (28-3), but the South African champion withdrew from the bout and thus the tournament with an acute shoulder injury.

American Stephon Young (18-2-3) replaced the removed Tete and was stopped by a knockout, jaw swivelling Donaire left hook with 27 seconds left in the sixth of 12 scheduled rounds.

The sentimental appeal in Saturday’s final is the narrative of the popular ageing champion (Donaire will be 36 when he fights on Thursday) vs the regnant, younger fighter (Inoue will be 26). The stylistically classy and powerful Donaire vs the Japanese wrecking-ball that is Inoue; the experienced statesman in his 46th professional fight vs the undefeated champion in his 19th.

Inoue isn’t without class, but his power is the headline-grabbing attribute he is renowned for and typecast to. 16 of his 18 fights have finished within the distance. Donaire also carries power – 65% of his victories have ended via knockout – and he has looked rejuvenated and inspired during this tournament, whereas beforehand increasingly-vocal suggestions were that his speed and athleticism were beginning to evidence the inevitable signs of age-induced degradation.

Herein lies the intrigue. Can he rally again? Can he overcome the seemingly insurmountable obstacle which is the Ring magazine #4 ranked pound-for-pound ranked fighter to hold a career ninth world title ranging across all the four main sanctioning bodies?

This writer does not suspect so. Though I, like many, would also dislike to see Donaire get brutally stopped. A fitting tribute for a fighter of his enduring class and stature would be to exit the elite level of world championship boxing having at least heard the final bell.

Will he manage that? I remain unconvinced.