The undefeated and Undisputed Super Bantamweight World champion Naoya Inoue who was named Ring Magazine’s 2023 Fighter of the year, is set to defend his titles against Mexican Luis “Panteri” Neri.
The undisputed championship bout will be Inoue’s first fight this year which will take place on May 6 at the Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan.
Inoue is coming face to face with a Mexican southpaw who has tagged him as ‘overrated, overconfident and ordinary’. Despite being a knockout expect, Inoue must thread cautiously against his nemesis come fight night who also has an incredible knockout ratio of 77% (35-1, 27KOs).
In an interview with Boxing Scene, this is what Luis Nery had to say
“Inoue is a very good fighter and this is the biggest fight of my career – four titles are on the line. But I’ve seen his fights and I think he’s overrated. I think he’s an ordinary fighter, or at least that’s how it appears to me. I’m going there looking for the knockout. I’m not going to Japan looking for a decision.
“I have the typical Mexican style. I like to come forward. I like throwing punches. I’m prepared to go 12 rounds. But I hope it doesn’t go the 12 rounds. I want it to end early. You will see a conditioned, stronger, faster, and intelligent Nery who hits hard.”
The Ring Magazine’s 2023 fighter of the year expressed his thoughts during an exclusive interview with Daisuke Sugiura (a RingTV.com contributor and a member of the Ring Ratings Panel) about his fight with Nery next month
“Nery is a fighter who likes to mix it up. He is resilient and has a strong will to fight. But I have confidence in myself to be able to be better than him even in the early rounds. If there is something I need to be careful about, it’s that he is good at throwing combinations from middle range, and it’s like he throws punches while moving. I’ll need to pay attention to his sense of distance [and take control of the distance].
When quizzed about Nery’s fight versus Azat Hovhannisyan which won Ring Magazine’s fight of the year, he said
“I haven’t watched the full fight but watched some highlights. I did some sparring with Hovhannisyan [during a visit to California in 2022], but my hunch is that he has trouble with southpaws. That’s why I think Hovhannisyan couldn’t show his true potential against Nery.” Inoue expressed.
Naoya Inoue versus Luis Nery is a fight to watch. The event is promoted by Bob Arum’s Top Rank, Teiken Promotions and Ohashi Promotions.
By Jackson Kojo Galley