BY NICK GIONGCO
Japanese champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue have signed up two Filipino fighters to serve as his sparring partners as he gets ready to face Filipino pride John Riel Casimero in their unification bantamweight clash on April 25 in Las Vegas.
Since Feb. 14, ALA Boxing Club-Cebu stablemates Kevin Jake Cataraja and Prince Albert Pagara have been banging bodies with Inoue at the Ohashi Boxing Gym in Yokohama.
Just this Tuesday, Cataraja and Inoue went at it and the 24-year-old Cataraja, a natural super-flyweight (115 lbs) said he bloodied his fancied sparmate’s nose.
But Cataraja, who holds an 11-0 card with nine KOs, paid dearly for his show of bravado.
“I have been aching all over,” said Cataraja, originally from Cebu City, said in Pilipino.
To ease the pain, Cataraja said he had to take a pain reliever shortly after to minimize the discomfort.
“Inoue punches really hard. When he lands, you feel it.”
The 26-year-old Pagara, who has a 32-1 slate with 23 KOs, seems to handle the bruising and intense sessions much better.
Besides, Pagara is a super-bantamweight (122 lbs), which is above Inoue’s division of 118 lbs.
Still, Pagara doesn’t deny the punching power of Inoue, who holds the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation crowns.
“He (Inoue) hits as though he fights in my division,” added Pagara, who is originally from Maasin, Southern Leyte, also told the paper in Pilipino.
One time, Pagara said he almost went down from a shot to the body.
“I thought I was going to go down but I told myself not to hit the floor,” said Pagara, who feels Inoue “is probably scared to get hit by Casimero.”
“Maybe, after watching Casimero knocked out Zolani Tete, he told himself that I don’t want to get hit that’s why he is training hard,” said Pagara, referring to how Casimero mauled the elusive South African in winning the World Boxing Organization title last year in Birmingham, England.
“Inoue is training like Manny Pacquiao. He works very hard in the gym aside from training like hell in the morning,” added Pagara.
The opportunity to travel to Japan and stay there for a month with allowances and pay is a blessing for Cataraja and Pagara, who haven’t been in action since last year.
“Inoue’s people treat us very well and I will gain lots of experience from sparring with him,” said Cataraja, who is in his third stint as Inoue’s sparmate.
“We have no issues and it’s great to be here and dining on Japanese food. I love ramen so much,” said Pagara, who had served previously as a sparring partner of the feared Japanese.
Pagara echoes Cataraja’s observations but goes a bit further.
“From now on, I will no longer fear anyone in the ring because I sparred with the Monster. One you get into the ring with Inoue, you’ll never get scared again fighting anyone.”
As to who’s going to win the fight, Cataraja and Pagara are on the same page.
“Whoever hits first will win it,” said Pagara, who remembered sparring with Casimero in 2018.
“Both are very strong and if there’s one sure thing about this fight, it’s going to be a slugfest. I can’t wait to watch it,” said Pagara.
