Is It Safe to Bet on Naoya Inoue Becoming the WBA Bantamweight Champion?

Fans who have been betting on Naoya Inoue have not been let down so far. The 25-year-old boxer, who goes by the moniker “Monster”, has won all 15 of his fights. Will his winning streak continue in his 16th bout?

On May 25, Inoue will step in the ring with WBA bantamweight champion Jamie McDonnell to take his title. Online betting sites in Japan think he has good chances of pulling that off. The odds for McDonnell’s keeping the belt are 6.50. Inoue’s fans get the best odds at Unibet Sportsbook but even there the return for the Monster’s victory is only 1.11. Is betting on Inoue as safe as these number indicate?

McDonnell unfazed by the Monster’s threat

It should be noted that McDonnell has been the underdog in most of his important fights. He has proved his ability to handle challenges and surprise bookies in fights against the likes of Liborio Solis, Tokomi Kameda or Julio Ceja.

McDonnell’s trainer, Dave Coldwell, reminds us that his trainee “loves it when people are telling him he’s up against it and that he’s got no chance because that brings out the best of him.” He has a point when he says McDonnell made a career out of upsets. So how realistic is his confidence in winning against all odds?

Don’t worry: betting on Inoue seems safe

McDonnell stands at 5’10’’ with a 72 inch reach and has the size advantage over Inoue (who is 5’5 with a 67 inch reach). However, Dellboi Boxing News argues that this won’t influence the fight because McDonnell’s natural fighting style is to come forward instead of boxing off the back foot. This neutralizes his only real advantage over Inoue.

But even if McDonnell tries to adjust his tactics to exploit his reach, Inoue will still give him a hard time. While McDonnell has demonstrated durability in the past, it’s debatable whether he will be able to withstand the Monster’s punching power. Moreover, as Dellboi points out, Inoue is more effective at combinations than his opponent, has more impressive counterpunches, and seems to be a better technician in general.

McDonnell is a good boxer, but he probably doesn’t have what it takes to stop the Monster: we are expecting Inoue to add another KO to his records. So why not add another successful bet to your records?