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When you make good fights, good things happen.

Takuma Inoue repeated his victory over Tenshin Nasukawa a mere 10 months after their first meeting to defend his WBC bantamweight title.

Takuma, who is most often referred to as the younger brother of Naoya Inoue, has come into his own. He is not his brother; he is a speedster and trickster in the ring. He shows power at times, but is more of a traditional style we are accustomed to from Japanese boxers of years past.

The fight had some drama. Takuma got sat down in the seventh round. Intrigue followed as Nasukawa, who was questioned for arrogance for wanting the bout so quickly after losing to Takuma, looked to potentially be in the right. Yet, craft and experience prevailed.

Takuma was able to turn the tide and further his legacy. Though Takuma will probably spend the majority of his career in his brother’s shadow, he is forging a top-20 professional career currently and taking on the best of his era.

For Nasukawa, who debuted most notably as a kickboxer who got stopped by Floyd Mayweather in an exhibition bout. I thought he was more of a novelty act at first, but it is clear he has proven to be a world-class fighter; he just can’t solve the puzzle that is Takuma Inoue.

Undercard results:

Sam Goodman is a world champion (sort of).

Goodman defeated former beltholder Ryosuke Nishida via a unanimous decision to pick up the interim IBF junior featherweight title. Goodman is best known for being scheduled to fight Naoya Inoue, but it’s not happening. Then, he lost to Nick Ball, and for most fans in the U.S. they probably forgot about him. But, you know who didn’t The Good Fight’s Anthony Cocks, who wrote this great piece about Goodman prior.

Nishida is best known for being stopped by Junto Nakatani; the fight was a true gem that flew under the radar.

The shocker of the evening was Ricardo Malajika winning the vacant WBC junior bantamweight title against heavily hyped Tomoya Tsuboi via a split decision. Tsuboi was competing for a world title in his fifth pro fight, after having one of his fights ruled a no-contest. Tsuboi looked amazing against an old Carlos Cuadras 10 months ago, and appeared to be dominant against Pedro Guevara before the bout was halted. Many thought Tsuboi won, but Malajika came to win, and it was a close fight. If anything, it taught us another lesson: experience matters. I am sure this fight will be revisited at some point.

Ryusei Matsumoto won a 12-round unanimous decision over Russell Acosta Silveira. The bout was for the interim WBO strawweight title.

Johnny Fisher

Johnny Fisher won a majority decision against Michael Pirotton. Nothing about it was all that fun for a fighter whose career was built on a good story, charm, and exciting fights.

Fisher started slow; Pirotton’s use of a jab troubled him. A Fisher punch opened a cut on Pirotton, which seemed to be a godsend for Fisher. It is just hard to see where Fisher goes. He was a big signing for Zuffa Boxing, and viewed as a big ticket seller. This was just a strange fight that I scored as a draw.

Undercard results:

Radivoje Kalajdzic, better known as “Hot Rod,” is benefiting from Zuffa Boxing and shows what the entity gets right. Kalajdzic was probably fit to be a gatekeeper, and now he might be on the cusp of a big fight after defeating Craig Richards in the U.K. Richards is a beloved high-level British gatekeeper, who Kalajdzic defeated via a 10-round unanimous decision, exemplifying his point by dropping him in the 10th round. Kalajdzic now holds consecutive wins over former beltholder Oleksandr Gvozdyk and Richards. That is a good run.

Middleweight Lee Cutler won an uneventful 10-round unanimous decision over Louis Greene; featherweight Alexis De la Cerda won a 10-round unanimous decision over Cain Lewis; middleweight Leo Ruiz defeated Cesar Mateo Tapia via a unanimous decision. Ruiz-Tapia shocked me that it wasn’t more fun.

Other notables: women’s welterweight Kayla Allen stopped Edina Kiss in her pro debut, and cruiserweight Rogelio Romero stopped Aurel Ignat.

Other notable results:

In L.A., a women’s WBC junior bantamweight eliminator ended in a split draw between Mai Soliman and Maria Micheo. Soliman’s name might be familiar as she lost to WBO women’s champion Mizuki Hiruta in May, which was a competitive bout. Junior lightweight contender Otar Eranosyan won a 10-round unanimous decision over Duvan Zuleta, and also Justin Viloria rebounded from his first career loss, beating Bay Area veteran Willie Shaw.

Junior lightweight title contender Henry Lebron recorded a highlight-reel KO, as he stopped Derlyn “El Coyote” Hernandez in the eighth round. It was Lebron’s first fight with Salita Promotions, his new promoter. Women’s junior lightweight Kiria Tapia won a technical decision over Juliana Basualdo. An accidental head clash stopped the bout in the fifth round, as Tapia suffered a big gash in her forehead. Since it went past the fourth round, it went to the judges’ cards, who scored it for Tapia.

Welterweight Tyreem Haywood (A/K/A Moo Banga) stopped Abram Martinez in the second round. Haywood had won his first eight fights via first-round knockout; this is the first time he made it to the second round. Middleweight Kyrone Davis won a unanimous decision over Jeison Rosario; it was a demanding fight for both. Davis got dropped in the fight. It was a good win for Davis, but highly cautionary for the veteran’s chance for a level above this. Junior welterweight Thomas Blumenfield won a split decision against game spoiler Dante Ettore.

Former MMA champ Henry Cejudo won a split decision over Javon Walton.

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Dakota is on assignment, so Lukie is joined today by boxing writer Craig Scott.

We start with the big news of the week, which is “what the hell is going on with Anthony Joshua vs. Tyson Fury. It is a good British fight that U.K. fans deserve to see, but by no means should it be the most consequential fight in the sport. Rather than being about the fighters, it is turning into something else: a battle of two influential figures: Dana White and Eddie Hearn (Joshua’s promoter).

Then, we get to the boxing. This morning, Takuma Inoue defeated Tenshin Nasukawa again, Sam Goodman won the interim title defeating former champion Ryosuke Nishida, and the shocker of the evening: South Africa’s Ricardo Malajika defeated Tomoyo Tsuboi. Tsuboi was looking to win a world title in his third fight.

Other results:

Johnny Fisher looked average-at-best against Michael Pirotton in a sleepy Zuffa Boxing debut; light heavyweight Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic defeated Craig Richards, Leo Ruiz defeated Lee Cutler, and Alex “The Villain” MacMillan became a Lukie favorite.

Timestamps
0:00 Intro
2:30 Joshua-Fury
11:43 Johnny Fisher
25:30 Ben Whittaker
34:50 Japan card

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In this video, boxing writer Tom Eaton joins me to talk about the following subjects:

- How good is Pat Brown, and why should U.S. fight fans care?
- Thoughts on Johnny Fisher's Zuffa Boxing debut
- Ryan Garcia vs. Isaac Cruz?
- The card in Japan on Sunday
- What does the "face of boxing" mean?
- Canelo Alvarez vs. Christian Mbilli preview

Timestamps
0:00 Pat Brown
6:19 Johnny Fisher
10:53 Ryan Garcia vs. Isaac Cruz thoughts?
13:00 Japan card
21:00 Face of boxing convo
25:42 Canelo vs. Mbilli preview

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In the opening segment, Lukie reflects on how Nestor Bravo got his chance at glory when he faced Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, but not all chances are meant to be wonderful.

Then, Lukie rambles.

This week, we talk about John Hedges, Jesus Ramos Jr., and a deep dive into Takuma Inoue.

Then, Film Study, where Lukie looks at the following:

• Takuma Inoue

• Tomoya Tsuboi vs. Ricardo Malajika

• Ryusei Matsumoto vs. Russell Acosta Silveira

• Lee Cutler vs. Louis Greene

• Hot Rod vs Craig Richards

• Luke McCormack

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How to watch: Sunday, 1 AM PST on DAZN

Remember a time when ESPN+ broadcast every fight from Japan? You could wake up, set your alarm, and find all these exciting fights, or if you had insomnia, you could roll right into the fights.

That was only three or four years ago, but it feels like a lifetime ago. In fact, almost feels like it was a year ago.

WBC bantamweight champion (and younger brother to Naoya Inoue) Takuma Inoue will face the man he beat in November, Tenshin Nasukawa, in a rematch.

It is a good fight, but one flying under the radar in a very sleepy U.S. calendar. Japanese boxing has been one of the delights of this decade, but is getting harder and harder to follow since Top Rank lost the ESPN deal.

On the undercard:

Will we witness the rise of Tomoya Tsuboi? He faces Ricardo Malajika, a fighter I know nothing about, but I will try to interview a reporter who does (thanks to y’all) to do my research. Tsuboi holds a win over an older Carlos Cuadras, not as impressive as it would have been during Cuadras HBO run, but still a name. What is impressive is that he is fighting for the vacant WBC junior bantamweight title in his fourth fight. Sadly, Tsuboi is largely unknown. Probably because the era of great junior bantamweights has all but vanished, with the last one people knew Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, moving up to bantamweight.

Tsuboi could be the next one, but he has to win. Is this the start of a new era? We will see.

A great bout between former belt holder Ryosuke Nishida as he faces Sam Goodman for the vacant IBF interim junior featherweight title. Nishida had a solid run as bantamweight champ with wins over Emmanuel Rodriguez, Christian Medina, and Daigo Higa. Last year, Junto Nakatani stopped him to hand him his first loss.

Goodman will look to land his first title (of sorts) of his career in this bout. Goodman is a solid boxer who defeated Ra’eese Aleem and lost in a title fight to Nick Ball last year.

Both Goodman, an Australian overshadowed by Tim Tszyu and Jai Opetaia, and Nishida, overshadowed by Inoue, are looking to regain momentum, as both are great fighters, but also a lot too close to becoming a gatekeeper probably for their liking.

Zuffa Boxing in the U.K.

How to watch: 11 AM PST on Paramount+

Every fight for heavyweight Johnny Fisher will be tough. The likable heavyweight will face Michael Pirotton, a fighter I vaguely remember fighting on ProBox TV cards two years ago. The bout is Fisher’s first with Zuffa Boxing and seemingly a competitive bout on paper between two domestic-level fighters. Pirotton resembles Raphael Akpejiori in terms of a long, rangy fighter, who appears to have come to boxing late. Pirotton has fought tougher competition and was eliminated in the WBC Grand Prix in the first round

In the co-feature, we get a good one. Light heavyweight Craig Richards, a game British vet, will face Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic, who is coming off stopping Oleksandr Gvozdyk. It is two high-level guys who are forgotten about getting a chance on a card. For Richards, a homecoming; for Kalajdzic, a chance to become a true contender.

My fight of the night will be a middleweight bout between Cesar Mateo Tapia, who had a fun fight with Endry Saavedra, where Tapia hit the canvas a few times, and Leo Ruiz. Ruiz beat Raul Garcia on ProBox TV in 2023, and then was stopped by regional Mexican fighter Elias Mauricio Haedo in 2024. The two have shown vulnerabilities and enjoy exchanging punches could be a good one.

Also, featherweight Alexis De la Cerda is coming off a highlight-reel KO of Ervin Fuller III; he faces unbeaten Irish fighter Cain Lewis.

Other notable bouts:

A featherweight bout between Liam Davies and Nathaniel Collins is a fun domestic bout that, if you are inside and doing nothing in the U.S., I wouldn’t be mad if you opted to watch it.

Saturday night, Salita Promotions returns on Wynn Records Network. The main event will be recent signee Henry Lebron facing Derlyn Hernandez. Lebron is a perennial junior lightweight sitting in the on-deck circle, unable to get over the hump and land a title fight. If Hernandez’s name sounds familiar, he knocked out unbeaten Abisael Cotto in March.

The co-feature will see women’s junior lightweight Kiria Tapia return to action against Juliana Basualdo. I am a big fan of Tapia, who has a good personality and seems to be a future titleholder.

In Philly, a good crossroads bout will take place as middleweight Kyrone Davis will face Jeison Rosario. A sneaky good undercard bout is Thomas Blumenfeld vs. Dante Ettore. Ettore is better than his record suggests. Also, “Moo Banga” Tyreem Haywood will face veteran Abram Martinez. Haywood is 8-0 (8 KOs), and Martinez is a solid Las Vegas veteran. This speaks of confidence from a young fighter. This card will stream on Rising Stars Promotions’ YouTube page at 4 PM PST.

Alexy de la Cruz fights in Rhode Island. He is an Olympian I quite like and is already fighting in eight-round bouts. Keep an eye out for him.

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This weekend we were starved for action, but in a week with mild anticipation, as the NFL takes over the American airwaves for the second week in a row, "King" Ryan Garcia is the story.

After Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz knocked out Nestor Bravo, he called out Garcia. What are the guys' thoughts on this?

Mainly, WBO super middleweight world champion Hamzah Sheeraz, who won his title against largely unknown Alem Begic and made a lackluster July title defense against Simon Zachenhuber, vacated his belt. Not to mention, Zachenhuber had lost to Pawel Augustynik in April.

Sheeraz has opted to not proceed with the purse bid proceedings to face Zhanibek (Janibek) Alimkhanuly. This marks the first major champion to give up a title since Peter Quillin did so in 2014, and was shunned. That decision for Quillin was one he never truly recovered from. For Sheeraz, it seems it could have deeper implications. The reason seems to be that the pay is not worth the risk. Sheeraz has been a favorite of Riyadh Season, and with UBOs potentially going into place, could fighters now begin to question the point and purpose of sanctioning bodies? Promoters and sanctioning bodies used to have to work together, and the titles symbolized larger purses and legacy. Could fighters who, if nothing else, feel sympathetic to Zuffa Boxing potentially vacate belts? So what is next for the WBO super middleweight title? More than likely a vacant title fight between Janibek vs. Jacob Bank.


The co-feature saw super middleweight Daniel Blancas defeat Sergio Jimenez, but this came after Jesus Ramos Jr fell ill the day before the weigh-in as his fight with Meiirim Nursultanov was off.

The undercard was showcase fights for middleweight Olympian Eumir Marcial, who stopped Omar Ulises Huerta, and Mexican Olympic silver medalist Marco Verde, who stopped Guillermo Hernandez, but had to get off the canvas.

In the U.K., cruiserweight Pat Brown won a wildly fun bout against John Hedges. Brown was losing the fight, only to rally on to stop Hedges. Also, shout-out to Mark Jeffers for getting a win over Kieron Conway and having a member of his team hook me up with his walkout song. Shabazz Masoud also won his debut at featherweight.

Looking ahead to next week….

The biggest card is in Japan on Sunday and broadcast on DAZN. Takuma Inoue will put his WBC bantamweight title on the line against Tenshin Nasukawa in a rematch, while fast-track Japanese star Tomoya Tsuboi will face Ricardo Malajika for the vacant WBC junior bantamweight title, and former champ Ryosuke Nishida will take on Sam Goodman for the vacant IBF interim junior featherweight title.

What is most scary is how under-the-radar this card is, and how the demise of Top Rank on ESPN has seen interest in Japanese boxing dim.
Zuffa Boxing returns in the U.K.

Heavyweight Johnny Fisher will face Michael Pirotton in the main event. Other notable undercard bouts include light heavyweight Craig Richards vs. Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic, and a sneaky great fight between Cesar Mateo Tapia vs. Leo Ruiz.

On a regional level, Rising Star Promotions is putting on a great event including the following fights: Kyrone Davis vs. Jeison Rosario, former champ Emmanuel Rodriguez in action, and Tyreem Haywood vs. Abram Martinez.

Timestamps
0:00 Isaac Pitbull Cruz vs. Ryan Garcia
18:00 Hamza Sheeraz
24:43 Pat Brown
28:30 Japan
35:00 Takuma Inoue v. Tenshin
39:00 Zuffa Boxing card
46:25 Crawford Thoughts
56:30 Rising Stars Promotions

This weekend we were starved for action, but in a week with mild anticipation, as the NFL takes over the American airwaves for the second week in a row, "King" Ryan Garcia is the story. 

After Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz knocked out Nestor Bravo, he called out Garcia. What are the guys' thoughts on this?

Mainly, WBO super middleweight world champion Hamzah Sheeraz, who won his title against largely unknown Alem Begic and made a lackluster July title defense against Simon Zachenhuber, vacated his belt. Not to mention, Zachenhuber had lost to Pawel Augustynik in April. 

Sheeraz has opted to not proceed with the purse bid proceedings to face Zhanibek (Janibek) Alimkhanuly. This marks the first major champion to give up a title since Peter Quillin did so in 2014, and was shunned. That decision for Quillin was one he never truly recovered from. For Sheeraz, it seems it could have deeper implications. The reason seems to be that the pay is not worth the risk.  Sheeraz has been a favorite of Riyadh Season, and with UBOs potentially going into place, could fighters now begin to question the point and purpose of sanctioning bodies? Promoters and sanctioning bodies used to have to work together, and the titles symbolized larger purses and legacy. Could fighters who, if nothing else, feel sympathetic to Zuffa Boxing potentially vacate belts? So what is next for the WBO super middleweight title? More than likely a vacant title fight between Janibek vs. Jacob Bank. 


The co-feature saw super middleweight Daniel Blancas defeat Sergio Jimenez, but this came after Jesus Ramos Jr fell ill the day before the weigh-in as his fight with Meiirim Nursultanov was off. 

The undercard was showcase fights for middleweight Olympian Eumir Marcial, who stopped Omar Ulises Huerta, and Mexican Olympic silver medalist Marco Verde, who stopped Guillermo Hernandez, but had to get off the canvas. 

In the U.K., cruiserweight Pat Brown won a wildly fun bout against John Hedges. Brown was losing the fight, only to rally on to stop Hedges. Also, shout-out to Mark Jeffers for getting a win over Kieron Conway and having a member of his team hook me up with his walkout song. Shabazz Masoud also won his debut at featherweight.

Looking ahead to next week….

The biggest card is in Japan on Sunday and broadcast on DAZN. Takuma Inoue will put his WBC bantamweight title on the line against Tenshin Nasukawa in a rematch, while fast-track Japanese star Tomoya Tsuboi will face Ricardo Malajika for the vacant WBC junior bantamweight title, and former champ Ryosuke Nishida will take on Sam Goodman for the vacant IBF interim junior featherweight title. 

What is most scary is how under-the-radar this card is, and how the demise of Top Rank on ESPN has seen interest in Japanese boxing dim. 
Zuffa Boxing returns in the U.K. 

Heavyweight Johnny Fisher will face Michael Pirotton in the main event. Other notable undercard bouts include light heavyweight Craig Richards vs. Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic, and a sneaky great fight between Cesar Mateo Tapia vs. Leo Ruiz.

On a regional level, Rising Star Promotions is putting on a great event including the following fights: Kyrone Davis vs. Jeison Rosario, former champ  Emmanuel Rodriguez in action, and Tyreem Haywood vs. Abram Martinez.

Timestamps 
0:00 Isaac Pitbull Cruz vs. Ryan Garcia
18:00 Hamza Sheeraz
24:43 Pat Brown
28:30 Japan
35:00 Takuma Inoue v. Tenshin
39:00 Zuffa Boxing card
46:25 Crawford Thoughts
56:30 Rising Stars Promotions

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Well…

In boxing, you have stars, and you have people who get a chance.

On Saturday, it was clear Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz was a star, and Bravo’s first impression on a world-class stage… well, it wasn’t great.

Cruz knocked out Bravo in the sixth round of the main event, but the story was so much more.

Bravo hit the canvas in round one. Bravo was warned for holding by the end of the first round. Bravo lost a point in round two. Referee Thomas Taylor was peeved by the ugly fight and called for a cleaner fight to start the third round. Bravo proceeded to catch Cruz with two low blows, one deemed accidental, the other not so much. In the fourth, Bravo lost a point for throwing Cruz.

Cruz did his thing. He pressed forward, aggressive, big looping punches. Bravo, when his crushing lead left hook dropped him in the sixth round. It was a formality, but that formality was shortened when Bravo chose not to get up.

The main event is not for everyone, and for now, Pitbull looks ready for the stage, and Bravo doesn’t.

The co-feature was intriguing, as WBC middleweight interim champion Jesus Ramos Jr. was set to defend his title against Meiirim Nursultanov. Nursultanov was looking to return after three years of inactivity; that was not the case, as Ramos came down with a case of food poisoning, as first reported by Lance Pugmire of BoxingScene. Via a press release, the bout will be rescheduled. In theory, PBC has at least two more fight dates this year, with Sebastian Fundora’s title defense on October 17, and David Benavidez’s rumored return in December. If Benavidez were to fight in Arizona, that could be a homecoming bout for Ramos, but there are a lot of ifs in that statement.

Without that fight, its absence was present.

The new co-feature was super middleweight; Daniel Blancas stopped Sergio Jimenez standing in the seventh round. Blancas battered the 39-year-old Jimenez, a late-sub, who just didn’t have the ability to compete with the young fighter who targeted his body. That said, the story of the fight was the courage of Jimenez, more than a display of skill for the up-and-comer Blancas. After a one-sided fight, referee Ray Corona saw enough, and as Jimenez shelled up on the ropes, the bout was called off. The fans were unhappy, as Jimenez won over the Southern California fans. Jimenez’s genuine personality came across as he got a post-fight interview with the fans cheering every word.

Mexican Olympic medalist Marco Verde stopped Guillermo Hernandez standing in the fifth round. Verde started fast, but Hernandez dropped Verde in the third round. It was shades of Terrell Gausha, an American Olympian, who was dropped by William Waters on the Canelo vs. Austin Trout undercard. Verde won most of the rounds, but showed vulnerabilities. So much so, I expect he will be a prospect for AT LEAST one more year.

In the TV opener, middleweight Eumir Marcial knocked out Omar Ulises Huerta in three rounds. Marcial took a punch to deliver a devastating KO right hook. Huerta was counted out.

Off-TV, Robert Guerrero Jr. got a first-round knockout over Shawn Rall, and super middleweight Lazaro Lorenzana won a majority decision over Marcos Vazquez Rodriguez. Credible reports from well-respected journalists like Abraham Gonzalez of FightsATW.com shared on social media how close and fun the fight was.

Other notable results:

Cruiserweight Pat Brown stopped John Hedges in six rounds. The bout was good, but also showed that Brown might be the next world-class cruiserweight. He won a British title in seven fights, and defeated an unbeaten, accomplished fighter in Hedges. Most impressively, Brown might have been down, and did what he needed to land a telling blow.

Featherweight Shabaz Masoud won a 10-round unanimous decision over Ckari Cani Mansilla. The win marks his debut at a new weight class after beating Peter McGrail in December. Mansilla was a quality win. He knocked out unbeaten prospect Dylan Price. It was a composed world-class performance from Masoud.

Super middleweight Mark Jeffers defeated Kieron Conway via a 10-round decision. Jeffers was coming off back-to-back losses to record a career-best win, while dropping his second fight in a row after losing an October fight to unbeaten prospect George Liddard. It was a good fight, but not the slugfest I hoped for. Jeffers started fast, and though he slowed, his early start won him the fight.

In the TV opener, lightweight Cory O’Regan won a 10-round unanimous decision over Joe Howarth. Howarth has lost two of his last three. Giorgio Visioli outpointed him in December. O’Regan is on a two-fight win streak since being stopped by Jack Rafferty.

This week’s questions are as follows:

1. Is Isaac Cruz an elite junior welterweight?

2. Thoughts on Ali Act

3. PBC 2.0: What does the second era of PBC look like?

4. Jesus Ramos (and somehow that is a question)