By Ian S Palmer
Unbeaten Naoya Inoue of Japan will be defending his IBF and WBA Bantamweight Titles against IBF mandatory challenger Michael Dasmarinas of the Philippines this Saturday, June 19th. The 12-round bout from the Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas can be seen live on ESPN and ESPN+ in America while fans in Canada can catch the action on TSN 2. Fans in the UK can see it on Sky Sports Action and it’s scheduled for Wow Wow Tv live in Japan with a later showing on Fuji TV. Inoue last fought on Halloween night when he stopped Jason Moloney in the seventh round. The southpaw Dasmarinas was last in action in October, 2019 when he stopped Artid Bamrungauea in the fifth round.
The 28-year-old Inoue advanced to the World Boxing Series final and won the IBF belt when he stopped Emmanuel Rodriguez in the second round in May, 2019. He then beat Nonito Donaire by unanimous decision in a classic to capture the World Boxing Super Series Bantamweight tournament as well as Donaire’s WBA Super World Belt six months later. Inoue had originally won the regular WBA title in May, 2018 when he stopped Jamie McDonnell in 112 seconds.
Inoue is also a former WBO Jr. Bantamweight and WBC Junior Flyweight Titleholder who has all the tools to be one of the world’s elite boxers and enters the ring at 20-0 with 17 Kos. Inoue defended his Junior Bantamweight Crown seven times before moving up in weight. The Japanese star became a world champion in just his sixth pro fight when he stopped Adrian Hernandez in the sixth round for his WBC Junior Flyweight Belt in May, 2014.
He defended it once then moved up to super flyweight and took the title from Omar Narvaez by second-round KO in December, 2014. Inoue has been a sensation in his homeland since turning pro in 2012 and has boxed 114 rounds since. He’s a hard hitter with good boxing skills and owns a very impressive 85 per cent knockout ratio.
Inoue stands 5-feet-5-inches tall with a 67.5-inch reach. He enjoyed a fine amateur career and is 15-0 with 12 Kos in world title fights. He’s also beaten the likes of Juan Carlos Payano, Ryoichi Taguchi, Kohei Kono, Antonio Nieves, David Carmona and Ricardo Rodriguez. He’s also 8-0 with 6 Kos against current or former world champions in Donaire, Rodriguez, Taguchi, Hernandez, Narvaez, Kono, McDonnell and Payano.
The 28-year-old Dasmarinas enters the contest with a mark of 30-2-1 with 20 Kos. His first defeat came at the hands of Marbon Bodiongan by way of second-round stoppage back in 2012 in his fourth pro bout. He was beaten again in 2014 when he dropped a split decision to Lwandile Sityatha in a shot at the IBO Super Flyweight Title. His lone draw was a 10-round affair with Manyo Plange in 2018.
Dasmarinas has 179 rounds of experience to his name since turning pro in 2012 after his amateur career. Since then, he’s won the WBC Youth World Super Flyweight Title, the Interim Philippines Boxing Federation Super Flyweight Title and the Philippines Boxing Federation Bantamweight Title. He also captured the vacant IBO World Bantamweight Title in April, 2018 when he stopped Karim Guerfi in the fourth round.
With a current knockout ratio of 60.6 per cent, Dasmarinas has decent power. He stands 5-feet-7-inches tall but has an unlisted reach so he’s got a two-inch edge in height on Inoue. Most of his fights have taken place in Asia and this will be his first bout in America. Also, 19 of his 33 opponents have entered the ring with losing records so this is a gigantic step up in class for him.
Prediction…
Inoue is currently regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world by many. He’s got tremendous power, likes to go to the body and can also take a solid shot. He’s lived up to his nickname of Monster and his last five KO victims lasted less than 14 rounds combined. However, he can’t be complacent even though Dasmarinas has been out of action for close to two years and doesn’t appear to be in his class. The challenger has enough power to be dangerous and definitely wants to make a name for himself by being the first to mash the Monster. I’m expecting Inoue to retain his titles but he needs to stay focused to do so.
