Takuma Inoue has beaten Tenshin Nasukawa twice.
Not once. Twice.
Yet, following their latest encounter in Tokyo, I wouldn’t be surprised if discussions about a potential third meeting begin gathering momentum.
My question is simple: why?
The second instalment of Takuma Inoue vs Tenshin Nasukawa was certainly more competitive than the first. Nasukawa demonstrated considerable improvement, hurt the champion and scored a seventh-round knockdown that briefly threatened to turn the contest on its head.
But he still lost.
Inoue recovered to retain his WBC bantamweight world title by unanimous decision, leaving him with two victories over the same opponent.
Two fights. Two victories. The same winner.
As far as I’m concerned, that’s a settled rivalry, not unfinished business.
Nasukawa Improved. Nobody Is Disputing That.
Before anybody interprets this as an attempt to dismiss Tenshin Nasukawa, let’s acknowledge something important.
He deserves considerable credit for his performance.
The former kickboxing superstar has made an impressive transition into professional boxing, and his development between the two Inoue encounters was evident.
This time, he presented a much more substantial threat.
His seventh-round knockdown was particularly impressive. It wasn’t a meaningless flash knockdown that the champion immediately brushed aside. Nasukawa genuinely hurt Inoue and threatened to produce a dramatic turnaround.
For a moment, the contest looked very different.
However, the problem with focusing too heavily on that moment is that boxing matches aren’t decided by whichever fighter produces the most memorable highlight.
They’re decided across the scheduled rounds.
And despite Nasukawa’s improvement, Inoue still did enough to win.
There is a significant difference between demonstrating that you are getting closer to beating somebody and actually beating them.
Nasukawa achieved the former. He hasn’t achieved the latter.
One Knockdown Doesn’t Erase Twelve Rounds
The seventh-round knockdown is undoubtedly the strongest argument anybody could make for another meeting.
Nasukawa hurt Inoue. He put him on the canvas. He showed that the champion isn’t untouchable.
All perfectly reasonable observations.
But let’s not pretend that scoring a knockdown automatically entitles somebody to another championship opportunity.
Inoue established his advantage during the opening half of the contest, using his jab, positioning and cleaner punching to accumulate rounds.
When Nasukawa eventually found his breakthrough, the champion was forced to recover and respond.
And that’s precisely what he did.
Rather than allowing the knockdown to dictate the remainder of the contest, Inoue regained his composure and continued doing the work necessary to secure another victory.
The official scorecards reflected a competitive encounter, but all three judges ultimately awarded the decision to Inoue.
That’s important.
Nasukawa produced the contest’s most dramatic moment, but Inoue produced enough quality across the full twelve rounds to retain his championship.
And even if somebody believes the second encounter was close enough to justify another look, there’s another inconvenient detail.
Inoue had already beaten him once before.
We cannot keep treating individual moments within a contest as though they somehow reset an entire rivalry.
Boxing Has Become Obsessed With Rematches
This is where Takuma Inoue vs Tenshin Nasukawa becomes part of a much wider problem.
Boxing has developed an unfortunate habit of treating recognisable rivalries as franchises.
A competitive contest produces a rematch. A more competitive rematch produces demands for a trilogy. And before long, two fighters have spent several years circling one another while the rest of their division waits for an opportunity.
I’ve discussed this previously in my article about boxing’s growing addiction to rematches:
There are occasions when another meeting is entirely justified.
A controversial decision, an inconclusive ending or a rivalry tied at one victory apiece can create legitimate sporting reasons for a third contest.
But that isn’t what we have here.
Inoue won their first meeting.
Nasukawa improved and earned a second opportunity.
Inoue won again.
At what point do we accept that the champion has answered the question?
The fact that a rematch was more competitive than the original doesn’t automatically establish the need for another one.
Otherwise, where does it end?
If Nasukawa loses a third encounter by an even narrower margin, do we arrange a fourth because he’s getting closer?
Surely, the objective of a rivalry is eventually to establish which fighter is better, not manufacture endless opportunities to arrive at a different answer.
Why Should Inoue Keep Giving Nasukawa Opportunities?
Something else bothers me about the possibility of a trilogy.
We spend so much time discussing what Nasukawa might achieve in another encounter that we risk overlooking what Inoue has already achieved.
He’s the WBC bantamweight world champion.
He’s beaten Nasukawa twice.
And he has every right to pursue different challenges.
The bantamweight division doesn’t begin and end with these two Japanese fighters. There are other contenders, other championship holders and potential unification opportunities worth exploring.
Why should Inoue’s career remain tied to the development of somebody he has already defeated twice?
Nasukawa’s improvement is commendable, but it isn’t Inoue’s responsibility to provide him with repeated opportunities until he eventually gets everything right.
That’s not how championship boxing should operate.
If anything, Inoue’s latest victory should strengthen the argument for moving forward.
He’s defended his championship against a familiar opponent who arrived better prepared, presented new problems and produced a genuine moment of danger.
The champion overcame those difficulties and retained his title.
What more does he need to prove against the same man?
I’d much rather see Inoue pursue another leading bantamweight or a unification opportunity than spend another training camp preparing for an opponent whose challenge he has already answered.
Nasukawa Can Become World Champion Without Beating Inoue
Here’s another point that seems to get overlooked.
Tenshin Nasukawa doesn’t need to defeat Takuma Inoue to establish himself as a successful professional boxer.
His transition from kickboxing has attracted considerable attention, and understandably so. He’s an exciting athlete with an established following, impressive technical ability and considerable room for further development.
His latest defeat doesn’t suddenly make him a failure.
If anything, his performance demonstrated that he is capable of competing with an established world champion.
But perhaps the sensible next step is to continue developing against different opponents rather than immediately returning to the same challenge.
Different styles present different problems.
Another leading bantamweight might give Nasukawa opportunities that Inoue’s particular approach doesn’t allow him to exploit.
He could rebuild his position, gain further championship-level experience and potentially pursue another world title opportunity elsewhere in the division.
That would represent progress.
There is a danger in allowing a fighter’s career to become defined by one opponent, particularly when that opponent has already beaten him twice.
Nasukawa has the talent to create his own story.
He doesn’t need Inoue to keep appearing in every chapter.
Commercial Appeal Isn’t the Same as Sporting Justification
Of course, I understand why promoters might be interested in another instalment of Takuma Inoue vs Tenshin Nasukawa.
Both men are recognisable names in Japanese combat sports.
Inoue carries the credibility of an established world champion, while Nasukawa brings a substantial following from his kickboxing career and growing profile in professional boxing.
Their second encounter also delivered considerably more drama than their first.
From a promotional perspective, those ingredients make another meeting an understandable commercial proposition.
But boxing needs to stop confusing commercial appeal with sporting necessity.
Just because people would pay to watch something doesn’t mean it’s the contest that should be made.
We already have enough championship opportunities influenced by commercial considerations without encouraging champions to repeatedly revisit rivalries that have produced the same outcome.
A third encounter might attract considerable attention.
It might even be entertaining.
Neither possibility changes the fact that Inoue has already beaten Nasukawa twice.
And surely the bantamweight division deserves an opportunity to move forward.
The Rivalry Has Had Its Answer. Twice.
I have absolutely no problem with Tenshin Nasukawa receiving another world championship opportunity in the future.
He’s talented, improving and capable of competing at the highest level.
I also wouldn’t rule out him eventually becoming a world champion.
But I don’t believe that development warrants an immediate third encounter with Takuma Inoue.
The first meeting established that Inoue was the better fighter on the night.
The second demonstrated that Nasukawa had improved considerably, but Inoue remained capable of overcoming him.
That’s a perfectly reasonable conclusion to their rivalry.
We don’t need to keep arranging the same contest until the result changes.
Let Nasukawa develop his career. Let Inoue pursue different championship opportunities. And let the rest of the bantamweight division have its chance.
A trilogy should settle unfinished business, not keep a rivalry alive simply because the names involved are commercially attractive.
Inoue won the first fight.
Inoue won the second fight.
It’s 2–0. Next opponent, please.
Over to You – Has Boxing Become Too Obsessed With Trilogies?
Would you watch Takuma Inoue vs Tenshin Nasukawa III, or has Inoue already done enough to settle this rivalry?
Does Nasukawa’s improved performance justify another opportunity, or should he pursue a different route towards becoming a world champion?
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Share your opinion in the comments, tell me whether you agree or disagree, and get involved in the discussion.
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