FIGHT OF FANTASY: SALVADOR SANCHEZ
prime years [when he passed away, but] he was already an established, unbelievable world champion. You’d go as far as [saying] one of the best featherweights of all time. [He] punched hard, punched long, like all the Mexicans do. All this is coming from a guy who hadn’t even reached his prime years and maybe hadn’t even developed his proper man strength. Not a one-punch knockout [artist], but he hit you often enough and punched correctly. He was accurate, especially when you go down the stretch in 15-round fights and people start to get exposed and make mistakes. “It’s scary to think what he might have been when he’s 27, 28, but the type of training they did, fighters burned out a little bit earlier than they [do] today. “Inoue has fought an incredible array of opponents and everybody in and around his divisions, but he’s not a natural featherweight. He’s coming up from junior flyweight, Sanchez just being the natural bigger guy. Sanchez beat a lot of Hall of Famers. The Azumah Nelson win alone is probably better than anything Inoue has done. I think featherweight is probably Inoue’s limit, but I could have imagined Sanchez, if he’d lived longer, going up to junior welterweight. “I couldn’t [pick against] Salvador Sanchez. I’d say Sanchez wins a comprehensive points victory or even a later knockout.” Prediction: SANCHEZ
guy who can focus a little harder. He’s always the guy who performs a little better. “I would take Sanchez, most likely by late TKO. I think he would eventually run [Inoue] into something and stop him.” Prediction: SANCHEZ
“We at CompuBox have retro stats on Sanchez’s last 10 fights and virtually all of Inoue’s, including those at 122. They are eerily similar in terms of average output, jabbing success, accuracy on offense, body-punching and defensive prowess. One big difference is in their punch distribution: Power shots comprised 57% of Sanchez’s thrown punches, while 52% of Inoue’s were jabs. Thus, had they met, Sanchez likely would have been more aggressive with his punch selection. “This will likely go the distance. Sanchez had a magnificent chin and would be able to absorb Inoue’s bombs. Conversely, because of the knockdowns Inoue experienced with Luis Nery and Ramon Cardenas, his chin is a little more vulnerable. I think the fight will be even after 10 rounds, but I think the result will be determined in the late rounds. Sanchez had a gear in rounds 11- 15 that few fighters ever had, and because of that, I’m picking Sanchez by competitive but unanimous decision.” Prediction: SANCHEZ Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at elraincoat@live.co.uk, and you can follow him on X @AnsonWainwr1ght.
STEPHEN EDWARDS World-Class Trainer and Boxing Analyst “I think the fight would be a contrast of styles. Inoue is naturally aggressive, but Sanchez is subtly aggressive; he doesn’t press the action quite like Inoue, but he is a violent fighter. He’s just a little bit smoother. Inoue looks like he has a little bit of a hand speed advantage, but I don’t think that would bother Sanchez, because I think his timing was so good and he likes aggressive fighters. Both guys seem very durable and have fighting spirit where if you have a good round against one of them, they don’t allow you to seize the momentum and dominate them for multiple rounds in a row. “I think it would come down to something very simple: Sanchez makes less mistakes than Inoue, and I think in a fight of this caliber where you have two A+ fighters, the fighter who makes the least amount of mistakes has the advantage. And because of that, Sanchez would find counterpunching opportunities. Sanchez is as good as you can get in terms of being a 15-round fighter. His stamina and his ability to concentrate late in a fight from Round 11 through 15 is absolutely remarkable. Once they get to those rounds, he’s always the fresher guy. He’s always the
VS.
LEE GROVES Boxing Writer, Historian and Statistician “A strong argument can be made that Inoue is the greatest fighter ever produced by Japan and Sanchez is one of the greatest ever produced by Mexico. At 5-foot-7, Sanchez is two inches taller than Inoue, but his 68-inch reach is only a half inch longer, so they size up well, physically. Sanchez was a long-range counterpuncher with superb timing and respectable power, while Inoue at his best was a scientific predator with excellent footwork and two-fisted power. I’m not sure how that power will translate to 126, especially as Sanchez possessed an iron chin.
NAOYA INOUE A DIVISION-BUSTING MONSTER ENTERS THE LAIR OF A FEATHERWEIGHT GIANT By Anson Wainwright
A 15-round featherweight imagine. So let’s do that. In May 1975, Sanchez turned
Inoue began his professional career in late 2012 at junior flyweight and claimed a world title 18 months later, in just his sixth fight. He has gone on to devour all before him, adding titles at 115, 118 and, most recently, 122 pounds, becoming Ring/undisputed champion in the latter two divisions and demolishing the likes of Omar Narvaez (KO 2), Juan Carlos Payano (KO 1), Emmanuel Rodriguez (KO 2) and Nonito Donaire (UD 12, TKO 2) along the way. However, it’s his eighth-round TKO over then-undefeated unified 122-pound titleholder Stephen Fulton that garnered international acclaim. To date, he has made seven title defenses at junior featherweight. This figures to be a battle of will and skill. Both men are excellent counterpunchers and have the power to capitalize on any openings that come their way. But as hard as “The Monster” hits, he’d be in uncharted waters at 126 pounds and facing one of the most
dangerous featherweights of all time – and doing it old-school, with three extra championship rounds. As the fight unfolded, who would take the initiative – and ultimately the victory?
fight matching the sublimely talented Salvador Sanchez against the superlative Naoya Inoue is a spectacular thing to
professional in his native Mexico at just 16 years old. About two years after that, he suffered what would be his only pro defeat, then was held to a draw in his American debut in 1978. By the end of 1979, he had amassed 33 victories. To kick off the ’80s, he unseated heavy- handed Ring/WBC champion Danny Lopez (TKO 13) and repeated the trick in the rematch (TKO 14), his second defense. In total, he made nine successful defenses in just two and a half years, beating future Hall of Famers Wilfredo Gomez (TKO 8) and Azumah Nelson (TKO 15). Tragically, his life and career were cut short when he was killed in a car accident at the age of 23.
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CARL FRAMPTON Former unified junior featherweight and WBA featherweight titleholder “It would be an incredible fight. Imagine how big that fight [would be] – absolutely monstrous. Two unbelievable fighters. “Salvador Sanchez wasn’t even in his
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