Sunny Edwards named Naoya Inoue as the winner in any match-up against Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguex.
Rodriguez beat Edwards last year to win the WBO flyweight title, and has since followed that up with a victory against Juan Francisco Estrada to become WBC super flyweight champion.
Inoue is a pound-for-pound great and fights TJ Doheny on September 3 ( live on ESPN+ in the US ).
There is speculation that the two could meet in a megafight down the line, and recounting his experience in the ring with Rodriguez, he praised the champion.
He told BoxingScene : “It just became very, very, very hard to keep my focus mentally against someone physically and mentally so good in Bam, and I’ll give him all that props. I’ll keep chasing his tail, and he’s setting the pace right now at these weights, and that’s what I need.
“I need people in front of me to chase down; that motivate me; that make me up my game. I’m on it. My mind’s switched. If anything that loss has given me that, more than taken anything away from me.”
Discussing a potential Inoue vs. Rodriguez clash, he added: “I definitely think he’s one of the best fighters in the world – as I do myself. That’s why the fight was so good. Naoya Inoue is an absolute monster, but it’s a fight I’d love to see.
“When you’re dealing with this level of fighters, you’re dealing with a group of fighters rather than a one, two, three, four, five. When you have that much physical ability and understanding of a boxing ring – he has the chance to be one of the ones that challenges Naoya Inoue. Would I heavily favour him? Probably not. Inoue is one of the most phenomenal fighters there’s ever been.”
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