Round 2
Inoue cracks Fulton with a four-punch combination. Fulton remaining patient and composed but Inoue is on the attack, winning the exchanges with his blinding hand speed. Fulton hasn’t been able to get off against the quick, sharper man in front of him. Fulton in full retreat now, getting outboxed badly. An easy round for the Monster. Inoue has outlanded Fulton by a 26-6 margin over two rounds according to Compubox’s punch statistics.
Guardian’s unofficial score: Fulton 9-10 Inoue (Fulton 18-20 Inoue)
Round 1
There’s the bell. Fulton is fighting from the outside, taking measure of the task before him and looking to find range with his three-and-a-half-inch reach advantage. Inoue is throwing punches, looking to close that distance. The bull-v-matador matchup that we’ve expected is starting to take shape, but the bull has taken the early edge. Inoue is scoring with a quick, accurate jab. Neither fighter did a whole lot of damage in a feeling-out opening round, but Inoue outboxed the Philadelphian with relative ease and established the jab.
Guardian’s unofficial score: Fulton 9-10 Inoue (Fulton 9-10 Inoue)
Ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr is making the fighter introductions. Fulton is defending his WBC and WBO super bantamweight titles, having won all three of his previous title defenses. Inoue, the former undisputed bantamweight champion, has also won titles at light flyweight and bantamweight, having amassed a formidable 19-0 record in world title fights (with 17 knockouts).
Hello and welcome to today’s junior featherweight megafight between Stephen Fulton and Naoya Inoue. We’re kicking off a blockbuster week of boxing from Tokyo’s Ariake Arena, where Japan’s pound-for-pound great is moving up in an attempt to win a world title in a fourth different weight class.
It’s as significant a fight as we’ve seen between small men in some time and it’s all getting under way shortly as the fighters have made their way to the ring and the national anthems are being played. Not much longer now.
Bryan will be here shortly.
