NAOYA INOUE VS. WILLIE PEP
pounds, with an outstanding record of 31 wins with 27 knockouts. The former junior flyweight champion of the world, the former junior bantamweight champion of the world, the former undisputed bantamweight champion of the world, the former undisputed junior featherweight champion of the world, and the reigning undisputed, undefeated Ring Magazine, IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO featherweight champion NAOYA ‘MONSTER’ INOUE! Inoue!” The applause majestically erupts in waves from the packed Garden crowd, which includes a large number of Japanese fans who made the trip to support Inoue. His father removes his robe and the crowd can now see the phenomenal condition Naoya has achieved. He looks like he is carved out of marble. Referee Miller comes to the center of the ring and beckons the fighters and their chief seconds in. Pep, Gore, Inoue and his father come to center ring. After giving instructions on legal punches and knockdown procedures, Miller turns to Pep and says, “Buona fortuna,” then turns to Inoue and says, “Ganbatte. Touch gloves and come out fighting at the bell.” The fighters go to their respective corners and Miller gestures to the timekeeper: “Time!” ROUND 1 Inoue comes out hands high and stalking. Pep circles him and steps in with two left jabs that score between the gloves. Inoue jabs back but falls short. Pep is already quickly darting side-to-side. Inoue is cutting off the ring and is throwing crisp shots to the head and body on the move but is missing the gliding Pep. Each time Inoue throws a punch, Pep is countering like a matador. Inoue catches Pep with a blistering left hook/half uppercut aimed at the midsection, but it hits Pep’s arms and knocks him back three steps. The bell rings. 10-9 Pep.
works on his son, reminding him what he did to Cardenas and Nery after suffering knockdowns in those bouts. Arcel says to Pep, “Whatever Archie and Rubin did with you just paid off like a golden slot machine. Damn, Willie, you put 10 years on my life seeing that.” ROUND 4 Inoue, coming out hell-bent for leather, kicks his footwork into high gear and cuts the ring off on the stick- and-move specialist. Pep tries to adjust and has increased his foot speed and lateral movement, but Inoue has taken up the slack and closes the distance. He catches Willie on the turn with a left hook to the jaw, then follows it up with brutal combinations as Pep fades back against the ropes. The crowd is on its feet, sensing a KO, only to have Pep tie Inoue up, spin out and land a one- two on the way out the door. Inoue is effectively following him with short half-steps, and he is landing more welt- raising punches on Pep’s shoulders and arms. Despite the onslaught, Pep is fighting the fight of his life and retaliates with blazing hand speed, poking Inoue with lead right hands and one-twos to keep him off-balance. There’s the bell. 10-9 Inoue. The commentators all agree that Pep is up three rounds to one. ROUND 5 Pep and Inoue answer the bell slowly and meet in mid-ring, but neither one is showing the slightest signs of fatigue. Inoue keeps stalking with finesse and is stepping in with a hard jab, but his follow-up right hands and left hooks are either nullified, ducked or slipped while Pep is darting in and out and capitalizing on Inoue’s missed punches. Pep is landing more and more on the move with accurate flurries and is becoming more bold with Inoue. He leads with a stabbing right, then pivots, but Inoue catches him with a
Gordon: “Wow. Pep is not running but is making him miss by inches. Amazing.” Sugar: “Impressive. We’ll see if he can keep this up for 12 rounds. But right now, that was perfect boxing.” Bernstein: “Gentleman Jim vs. John L. Sullivan so far, or should I say Errol Flynn vs. Ward Bond?” ROUND 2 Pep comes out with more lateral movement and now, remarkably, is attacking Inoue and landing lighting- fast punches, in and out. Pep’s corner is screaming at him to keep boxing. In one exchange, Inoue nails Pep to the body and lands a short left hook and right hand to the head. Pep turned with the shots but was driven back and visibly winced – even though he blocked the body shot, it hurt him. Pep is still
gliding around the ring like a ghost on the move, landing punches. Inoue shows some faster footwork and traps Pep in a corner, landing a fusillade of punches that sound like explosions of leather. Pep spins out, but Naoya cuts him off and starts laying bombs on him. Pep still manages to spin out and duck, then comes back with quick combinations that surprise Inoue, whose face has noticeably reddened. Pep’s right side is also red from the left hooks he took in the corner. There’s the bell. 10-9 Pep. In Pep’s corner, Arcel and Gore plead with Willie to keep his distance and not trade with Inoue. According to the Japanese interpreter, Shingo Inoue is telling Naoya to take his time and catch Pep in an exchange, rather than lead, and also to keep hurting him to the body.
with a full shoulder snap, body dip, then a vicious, full-turn pivot left hook. Both land with tremendous snap on Inoue’s jaw, catching him by surprise. He goes down hard, not knowing what hit him. Pep flies to a neutral corner as Miller begins the count. Inoue arises at seven. The bell rings. The Garden is in shock. Collective bedlam has erupted at seeing the light-punching Willie Pep scoring a knockdown over “The Monster.” Inoue still looks strong going back to his corner and seems more surprised than hurt. 10-8 Pep. The commentators are almost at a loss for words, and the crowd is screaming so loud that no one watching the broadcast can hear them anyway. In Inoue’s corner, Shingo is as calm and clear as a mountain lake as he
ROUND 3 Pep is on the move again, darting in and out and side to side. He’s throwing fast and accurate but light punches that are landing on Inoue between and around his gloves. Inoue is visibly getting frustrated and is throwing straight, hard shots while moving forward. Finally, he lands the left jab- right hand combo to the jaw he has been trying for. Pep is wobbled, but he saw the shots coming and nullifies most of Inoue’s follow-up as he rushes in for the kill. Pep feigns dropping his hands as he takes a step backward, and Inoue steps in carelessly, not fearing any power from Pep. Then Pep springs the trap and throws the two punches he worked on with Moore and Carter – two shots he never threw in his entire career: a perfectly timed right hand
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