By Joe Koizumi
“Overweight!,” shouted Joe Gallager, the trainer of WBO bantamweight champ Paul Butler, when the digital scale indicated 55.55 kilogram–on the first trip of three-belt titleholder Naoya Inoue–against the exact bantam class limit 55.52 kg by just 0.03 kg, that is, 30 gram. Gallager so kindly presented a towel for Inoue to take off his pants and scale again naked. Naoya refused it, left the weigh-in room and came back just four minutes later. This time Inoue scaled in at 55.45 kg (117.75 pounds). Paul Butler weighed in at 55.50 kg (118-pound class limit).
“Monster” Inoue said, “I may go for a knockout early or carefully watch him move. I’ll fight with my own intuition, depending on his move.” Paul Butler coolly said, “I’d like to show an interesting fight.”
Undercard bouts:
WBO AP 140-pound title bout
Andy Hiraoka 140 vs. Jung Minho 140
OPBF 122-pound title bout
Yoshiki Takei 122 vs. Bruno Tarimo 121.5
Non-title bouts:
Takuma Inoue 122.5 vs. Jake Bornea 123.75
Satoshi Shimizu 127.75 vs. Landy Cris Leon 129.25
Both Filipino boxers, Bornea and Leon were shamefully overweight each by 600 gram (some 1.5 pound), and finally gave up their efforts to reduce weight any more. In such an important event, the Filipino boxers were so shameful that their overweight incident tarnished the weigh-in ceremony because the JBC staff had to patiently wait for Bornea and Leon to take time and reduce weight for hours. We hope the GAB, Philippine commission, to punish and suspend them upon their return.
Hironori Miyake 122.25 vs. Peter McGrail (Paul Butler’s stablemate) 122.75
Promoter: Ohashi Promotions.
Paul Butler is listed at 34 but looks closer to 43. Inoue needs to step up to Fulton to justify his P4P status. Beating up a 40-year-old Donaire and this guy isnt going to cut it.
I believe Inoue will crush Fulton the same way as everyone else has been crushed. That pressure will have Fulton exhausted.
Totally ridiculous for any fighter to come in overweight to the scales but it happens time and time again I don’t get it
Most of them it is trying to squeeze into a division too small for them. There was less of that before they added all the extra divisions.
Ridiculous to be just 30Gr over the weight limit? That is just a difference due to scale settings, but Inoue is a true professional
Andy Hiraoka is a pretty good prospect at 140 imo and I’m glad he’s on this card so a lot of people will get to see him – maybe for the first time. Hopefully he gets back to this side of the planet next year, as Asia isn’t very strong at jr welterweight and he’s approaching his prime at 26.
I heard Inoue farted just two times to be on the weight limit
The fight is on and and despite the results, I think this could be the last fight of Inoue as a bantamweight, maybe not because of weight Issues but rather of no more accomplishments to obtain at 118. As he did to before when he went from Jr. Flyweight to Super flyweight skipping Flyweight, I believe this time he will directly to Featherweight where he might find the hardest opposition he ever had in his entirely boxing career and perhaps his first defeat
If he wins and can still safely make the weight, I think he may stick around at bantam if Ioka is interested and beat Franco. Inoue – Ioka would be one of the biggest fights in Japanese history I think.
I knew Inoue would crush him.