Dec.26th Naoya Inoue vs Marlon Tapales

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Props to Tapales. He made Inoue look vulnerable in this fight but in the end Inoue got the job done as always.

 

[heavyarms21]

Cumulative power punches finally got to Tapales. Props to Tapales for giving it a real go.

He was doing better when he wasn't using the peekaboo guard, probably would have been finished earlier if he didn't do that though.

 

[Nova44]

He was doing better when he wasn't using the peekaboo guard, probably would have been finished earlier if he didn't do that though.

He switched back because he got cracked when Naoya doubled up on the right, it hurt him and he auto-reset to the guard that gave him safety. Ultimately him switching back killed him.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Welp, Inoue made history. He was already a HoFer before this fight but this is big.

 

[The Adder]

Inoue looked ordinary.

 

[SuperLuigi]

Who is next for Inoue? Casimero? Going up in weight? Edit: Inoue just confirmed in the interview he is not going up in weight.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Inoue looked ordinary.

He still got an early knockdown though and the stoppage before it even got to the championship rounds.

 

[baconCrunch]

tapales is a 100% counter fighter.
he fought entirely on the defense, on the back foot with a high guard.

inoue had no choice but to open up and take risks.

that finishing punch reminded me of the Narvaez KO. Inoue can get KOs on the gloves.

 

[battouter]

same chick that does the english translation for ufc events in japan.

 

[baconCrunch]

tapales was seriously hurt in the latter rounds, he has a great poker face.

 

[HuskySamoan]

Who is next for Inoue? Casimero? Going up in weight? Edit: Inoue just confirmed in the interview he is not going up in weight.

Sucks because I think he could beat guys like Brandon Figueora, Leigh Wood and Vargas. At Super Bantam Luis Nery is probably the best fight for him now.

Hopefully he reconsiders, he could capture a belt or two at Featherweight and retire.

 

[Seano]

Pretty good showing by Inoue, seems like fighting southpaws limits his punch selection a bit but he got the jobdone in there.

 

[Hagler]

Tapales barely won a round and got stopped, he still gets props and rightfully so.

 

[Seano]

I got up just in time to watch the main, was there anything worth looking at on the undercard?

 

[UFCIsNOTRigged]

Tapales kept trying to land his right hook early in the fight, which to his credit he did several times, but it never seemed to have the impact he was hoping for.

If he had instead began aggressively going to the body early I wonder if he could have found more success because the cumulative impact of those shots did seem to be getting to Inoue before the stoppage; even if only slightly.

Surely a future opponent of Inoue will build on todays success.

 

[Hagler]

I got up just in time to watch the main, was there anything worth looking at on the undercard?

Tsutsumi vs Anagushi was sick.

 

[Stormtrooper85]

What a performance from Inoue. I missed the first 3 rounds but from 4 on it was a great fight.

Inoue looked great, Tapales adjusted but Inoue made his own adjustments that Tapales didn't have an answer for.

2 Division Undefeated Undisputed an in just over 1 year.


I like the post fight when Inoue says I don't have the mental strength to do tune ups. I need maximum motivation. A rare fighter.

 

[heavyarms21]

Tsutsumi vs Anagushi was sick.

Only caught the last 5 rounds and it was already worth it. The timing of these Japan Cards makes watching this stuff interesting.

 

[Nova44]

Who is next for Inoue? Casimero? Going up in weight? Edit: Inoue just confirmed in the interview he is not going up in weight.

Nery or MJ most likely.

 

[heavyarms21]

Ultimately Tapales was a game Southpaw that got routed , still a better showing than Butler who ran for 11 rounds only to be caught and finished at the end.