Both men have made weight, and now the super-bantamweight showdown between defending four-belt king Naoya Inoue and WBA mandatory challenger Murodjon Akhmadaliev is mere hours away. And “MJ,” as Uzbekistan’s Akhmadaliev is known, says he has waited two years for this fight and now that he has it he will not walk away without the victory. Of course, saying you are going to defeat Inoue when 30 other fighters have tried and failed is one thing, doing it is another.
But plenty of people do see this fight – which will get underway around on Top Rank Facebook at 6:40 a.m. ET (US) / 11:40 a.m. UK time – as both the toughest test yet for “The Monster,” and also a Fight of the Year contender in the making. 32-year-old Inoue is the betting favourite, but some folks have pointed to the two knockdowns Inoue has quite recently suffered; these knockdowns being scored by Luis Nery last May, and by Ramon Cardenas this May, as proof that Inoue has slipped a little.
Akhmadaliev: “My Body Is My Weapon”
Maybe enough for Akhmadaliev, a southpaw like Nery, to pull off the upset the challenger is confident he WILL pull off.
Speaking with Ring Magazine, 30-year-old Akhmadaliev, who is 14-1(11), says the 122-pound division is “my division,” and he says his natural 122-pound body will be a “weapon” in the fight.
“Everyone can have their own opinion,” Akhmadaliev said. “They can underestimate me and my punches, but I will show you when the fight happens. When Inoue gets hit by my punch, we’ll see how he takes it. I’m not disrespecting anyone, but I will show my power in this fight. He beat everyone in the lower divisions, and now, at 122, he’s beating guys in our division. But I’m a natural 122 pounder, and I will be a problem for anybody. This is my division. My body is my weapon. I am the weapon.”
“MJ” is bang-on right when he says it will prove oh, so interesting to see what happens when he hits Inoue with a good shot. But the coin has a flip-side, and it will be equally as interesting to see what happens when Inoue tags Akhmadaliev with a hefty shot.
Prediction: Knockdowns, Drama, and a Late Finish
Who takes the better punch here, and could this prove to be one of the biggest factors in the outcome of the fight/expected war? This fight might actually surprise us and go the full 12-rounds, but don’t go betting on it.
Instead, in a classic battle that elevates both men and has fans screaming for a rematch, look for Inoue to get up from a knockdown, score a couple of his own in return, before stopping a still-game but buzzed Akhmadaliev in the late rounds.
Pick: Inoue TKO 11 Akhmadaliev.
Weights:
(Top Rank’s Facebook Channel, 4 a.m. ET/1 p.m. PT)
Facebook stream is available in the U.S., UK, and the Philippines
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Naoya Inoue 121.7 lbs (55.2 kg) vs. Murodjon Akhmadaliev 121.3 lbs (55.0 kg)
(Undisputed Super Bantamweight World Championship — 12 Rounds) -
Yoshiki Takei 118 lbs (53.5 kg) vs. Christian Medina 117 ¾ lbs (53.4 kg)
(WBO Bantamweight World Title — 12 Rounds) -
Yuni Takada 104 ¾ lbs (47.5 kg) vs. Ryusei Matsumoto 104 ¾ lbs (47.5 kg)
(Vacant WBA ‘Regular’ Minimumweight World Title — 12 Rounds)