The Monster Naoya Inoue returns to Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sunday night, against Ramon Cardenas. Inoue defends his Undisputed Junior Featherweight Title for the fifth time. This is Inoue’s first fight in Las Vegas since June 2021.
The Undercard starts at 6:15 p.m. ET on ESPN+, with the Main Card beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET. Here are my two best bets for Inoue vs. Cardenas.
Naoya Inoue to Win in Rounds 7-12 (+200)
Inoue is a knockout machine who doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon. On DraftKings Sportsbook, Inoue is a -5000 favorite to win this fight and -1000 to win via knockout. With odds like that, the better value play is to get Inoue to win in rounds 7-12, which is +200.
Inoue is 29-0 with 26 knockouts in his boxing career. Although his latest win against Ye Joon Kim came in the fourth round, four of his last six victories were in rounds 7-12. Cardenas is an experienced opponent who could force Inoue to take a different approach. Inoue has an elite calculated style and always likes to find the perfect moments to pick apart his opponent.
Rafael Espinoza to Win by KO/TKO/DQ (-135)
Like Inoue, Espinoza is one of the best knockout artists in boxing. Espinoza is 26-0 with 22 knockouts. He has won nine of his previous 10 fights by knockout. He is facing Edward Vazquez, who is a much smaller fighter. Espinoza is six inches taller (6’1″ vs. 5’7″) while having a nine-inch reach advantage (74″ vs. 65″).
Espinoza is also a big favorite at -1100, but you can also take him at -135 to add another knockout to his resume on DraftKings Sportsbook. Vazquez is 17-2 with four knockouts but lacks the necessary power to affect Espinoza. A knockout against Vazquez should be doable if Espinoza continues to be aggressive.
