International media were astonished by Naoya Inoue’s “no-guard challenge” that was so similar to Ali’s. “Butler was excessively passive. Butler was excessively passive.

Last Updated on 12/15/2022 by てんしょく飯

It was a moment that had the audience in awe, as seen at the December 13th boxing match between the four world bantamweight unification organizations at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo.

　The match was one-sided from the beginning.

WBA Super, WBC, and IBF world bantamweight unification champion Naoya Inoue (Ohashi), who had been predicted to have an overwhelming advantage in the preliminary rounds, put WBO bantamweight champion Paul Butler (UK) on the defensive and continued to attack aggressively and boldly.

But the 34-year-old veteran warrior endured anyway. He kept his opponent’s attackers on target with his small step work and did not lower his guard at all. Inoue was also moved by his opponent’s outboxing, and in the 6th inning, he showed a sneer as he invited punches with his hands hanging down unguarded, and in the 8th inning, he provoked Butler by thrusting his neck slightly forward with his hands clasped behind his back.

In the end, Butler succumbed to the onslaught of Inoue, who stepped up a gear in the 11th inning, and the fight ended in KO, with the 29-year-old Japanese fighter becoming the ninth in history and the first Japanese (Asian) fighter ever to achieve complete unification.

After the fight, Inoue told Butler that “things didn’t go according to the plan,” to which Butler replied, “I was thinking, ‘Why did I come to Japan? I wasn’t irritated, but I wondered if he really wanted to win.” “I provoked him like that to draw him out, yes, I did that,” he recalled with some dismay.

The “provocative behavior” of one of the world’s greatest “monsters” has been closely watched by the international media. The British sports radio station “talk SPORT” reported that “Butler did not take the bait that Inouye had thrown to him until the end,” as follows.

Inouye started to make fun of Butler after the midway point of the match, putting his hands down and crossing them behind his back. But Butler never made any attempt to open up. He seemed to have come to Japan to survive rather than to win. Inouye kept baiting and provoking him to the end, but Butler was not on board.

The U.S. broadcaster CBS also noted that Butler was “excessively passive,” and added, “The match was like a sparring match. As expected, Inouye was forced to play with him in unusual ways. He also introduced the provocative scene with a wry reference to a legend of the past.

The Japanese ‘monster’ did everything he could to get Butler to drop his high guard. Occasionally he would change his stance, mimicking Muhammad Ali’s famous shuffle. And finally, he took Butler down with a fierce combination against the ropes.”

Inoue kept his composure throughout, attacking the veteran with ease and composure. In the rare “provocation” that he displayed, we saw the greatness of the genius who had achieved the first ever great accomplishment.