Takuma Inoue (Ohashi) held a public workout at his gym in Yokohama on the 18th, as he prepares for the first defence of his WBC world bantamweight title on the “THE DAY” double world championship card at the Tokyo Dome on May 2. Inoue is set to face the challenge of veteran Kazuto Ioka (Shisei).
井岡の挑戦を受ける拓真 photo/Naoki Fukuda
With two weeks remaining until fight night, a sharp-looking Takuma Inoue remarked, “I have maintained my focus, continuing the momentum from my last outing.” The “last time” refers to his bout against Tenshin Nasukawa (Teiken), where a mentally and physically primed Inoue delivered a superb performance to hand Nasukawa his first professional defeat. Inoue asserts that he is approaching this bout against Ioka with that same “challenger’s mindset.”
“Ioka possesses a strength that isn’t apparent from the outside. I want to enjoy that aspect once we are in the ring,” Inoue said. The contest is highly anticipated as a duel between two of Japan’s premier technicians. According to his father and trainer, Shingo Inoue, Takuma has added another dimension to his arsenal since the Nasukawa fight, and preparations are complete. “We understand the importance of the mental game for this fight,” trainer Shingo noted, as they prepare to face the legendary Ioka with Takuma once again in peak condition.
While the main event features the world super-bantamweight clash between Naoya Inoue (Ohashi) and Junto Nakatani (M.T), the Inoue-Ioka bout is also garnering significant attention. Ohashi Promotions Chairman Hideyuki Ohashi predicts a high-level battle: “I believe it will be a technical contest, but ultimately, it will come down to a test of heart.” Inoue concluded his media session by demonstrating one round of shadowboxing.
