- Eddie Hearn says Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez is ready to fight Naoya Inoue in February or March, while trainer Robert Garcia has asked for April or May
- Garcia wants Bam to have a bantamweight unification in December and to prove he can take power at 118 pounds before moving up to face Inoue
- My prediction is that the fight gets made for the spring, but only if Bam’s team stops arguing in public, because Inoue has already started preparing for featherweight
A Split In The Camp
Right then. The biggest fight in the lower weights is being held up by the people who are supposed to be making it. Promoter Eddie Hearn says Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez is ready to fight Naoya Inoue in February or March. He put it plainly on Instagram, asking whether Inoue is fighting then, and adding that his man is ready. Bam’s trainer Robert Garcia has asked for April or May. Let’s not beat around the bush, that is not a small gap, and it is not a good look.
What Garcia Wants
Garcia’s plan is cautious, and I understand the thinking even if I do not love it. He wants Bam to have a proposed bantamweight unification in December first. After that, the April or May date would work, with Bam then moving up to 122 pounds to face Inoue. The reasoning is that he wants Bam to show he can absorb power punches from a strong fighter at 118 before he steps up to meet the best puncher in the sport.
It is a fair point. Make no mistake, Inoue is a proper monster, and Bam has never had a night where somebody has hit him as hard as the Japanese star will. But there is a price to being careful. Every delay is a chance for something to go wrong, and every extra fight is another injury or another bad night waiting to happen.
Inoue Is Not Waiting
Here is the real problem. Inoue has said he will not wait for Bam, and he has started preparing for featherweight at 126 pounds. He has not ruled out fighting Bam, which is the glimmer of hope, but his message is clear: be ready, or I move on. If Hearn’s date is the one the whole team agreed, the fight is much closer than Garcia is suggesting. If Garcia’s timeline holds, nobody quite knows when it starts.
My Prediction
I think the fight gets made, and I think it lands in the spring, because neither side can really afford to walk away from the biggest payday and the biggest legacy fight in the lower weights. Someone has to blink, and I expect Hearn to give Garcia his April or May. When they finally get in there, I like Inoue. He is levels above on power and experience, and Bam will have to prove he can take it. If you know, you know: this is the one everyone wants, so stop dithering, lads, and sign the thing.