GUEST COLUMN
What it’s like to share a ring with Inoue
IT WAS ONLY AFTER I GOT BACK TO THE CORNER THAT I REALISED I WAS IN THERE WITH NAOYA AND THIS WAS REAL
WE’VE been staying in a place just outside Tokyo and that’s where we’ve been for the majority of the stay. The odd occasion we have been out and into Tokyo and had a look at the place, but this was never intended to be a holiday for me because I was out here to do a job and that was to spar with Naoya Inoue as he prepares for Friday night’s fight with Jamie Mcdonnell.
There was excitement in the build-up for it because it was the opportunity to get in the ring with one of the best fighters in the entire world, and although it wasn’t for a title and there would only be a handful of people watching, the chance to get in there with someone like Inoue is not something that you let pass you by and you try to make as big an impression as possible.
I told myself that I’d grab the chance with both hands and try to learn as much as I could from it.
The first day I arrived at the gym I was very impressed with the entire set-up. My first step into the ring wasn’t against the main man though, it was against his brother, Takuma [bantamweight, 10-0], and I thought I handled myself really well.
I think we done about six rounds and I was happy with the way I performed in there. There’s not really a lot you can take from just sharing a few rounds with a fighter, but I definitely believed I done enough to get his respect.
The next day, I got called into the ring to spar Takuma again, and straight away I said to myself, ‘f ***** g Hell, he fancies this today.’ The pace was a lot faster, he cut the ring off so well, and the power was something else.
It was only after I got back to the corner that I realised I was finally in there with Naoya and this was as real as it could possibly get.
His power is special, really special, but it fades as the rounds go on.
If Jamie can get through those first few rounds and still be there after halfway then he has as good a chance as anybody at forcing the upset, but the power could be a real eye opener for him, just like it was for me.
Jamie should be busy in the first few rounds and stay on his bike, and when Inoue closes him down, because he will, Jamie has to grab and hold for dear life, and even make the fight messy if he can.
It’s a big ask for him, but he has a good team around him, and if he can get through those bad crisis moments, he can have success later in the fight.
I wish him and his team all the best.