Naoya Inoue rendered an ex-world champion unconscious with a thunderous right hand.
In his esteemed career, ‘The Monster’ has proven himself as one of the most ferocious punchers of all time. Bob Arum has even said Inoue is greater than Manny Pacquiao.
The gifted operator has carved out a truly remarkable legacy that will stand the test of time.
And on October 7, 2018, he produced quite possibly the best knockout of his entire career.
WOW: Naoya Inoue suffered shocking first-round knockdown by former world champion
Naoya Inoue finished Juan Carlos Payano inside the first round
In a meeting of two of the best bantamweights on the planet, Naoya Inoue and Juan Carlos Payano went head-to-head, with a spot in the semi-final of the World Boxing Super Series on the line.
With his home crowd at the Yokohama Arena cheering him on, the Japanese superstar came out of his corner intent on producing a spectacular showing.
Over the course of just a minute, Inoue watched intently, quickly downloading the data of his southpaw opponent.
Then, in an instant, he burst into action, firing off a truly magnificent right hand.
Payano collapsed toward the canvas, with zero chance of making it back to his feet in time to continue with the action.
Naoya Inoue was wobbled by a boxing legend during a thrilling world title fight
Inoue backed up his sublime performance against Payano by destroying Emmanuel Rodríguez inside of just two rounds at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland, to book his place in the final.
Back in Japan, The Monster was expected to dominate his last fight of the competition and walk away with the Muhammad Ali trophy.
However, picking up the silverware was anything but easy.
In a thrilling contest, Inoue was rocked to his core by a boxing legend.