Naoya Inoue vs. Nonito Donaire Betting: Will Inoue delight the home support in Saitama?

Professional boxing comes from Japan as Naoya Inoue aims to delight the home support with a win over the experienced Nonito Donaire at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama.

Three versions of the bantamweight world championship are on the line here, with the Japanese fighter and the Filipino contesting WBC, WBA, and IBF belts. Who will come out on top as the star of the show, setting up a huge second half of the year?

Naoya Inoue vs. Nonito Donaire Betting Odds and Fight Information

Fight Information

• Nonito Donaire is respected in boxing circles due to his stunning 48-fight career that has seen him claim no fewer than 42 wins, with 28 inside the distance.
• Naoya Inoue has a perfect 22-fight record with 19 wins scored inside the distance, resulting in a jaw-dropping 87% KO average.
• Venue & Location: Saitama Super Arena (Saitama, Japan)
• Kick-Off Time: 5:00 a.m. Eastern Time (6:00 p.m. local time)

Naoya Inoue vs. Nonito Donaire Odds

Odds are from Bovada Sportsbook.

Moneyline

• Naoya Inoue -600
• Draw +2000
• Nonito Donaire +375

Inoue targets a fourth KO win on the bounce

Naoya Inoue heads into what will be the 23rd fight of his career with a CV detailing 22 wins with 19 stoppages already on that list. He is ranked as the number one bantamweight in the world, and having battled hard to reach the pinnacle, and he won’t be about to give it up anytime soon.

The fighter from Yokohama is looking for a fourth KO/TKO win on the bounce after stopping each of his last three opponents before the end of the eighth round. He took care of Michael Dasmarinas inside three rounds, took out Jason Moloney in seven and Aran Dipaen before the end of the eighth.

Inoue may enjoy the backing of a home support with this bout staged in Japan, but he’s not a fighter who is scared to travel and take on opponents in their backyard, as he has proven many times already. Only two of his last five bouts have been in his homeland, with two in the United States and one in the United Kingdom.

Last five results for Naoya Inoue

• TKO win in the eighth round
• KO win in the third round
• KO win in the seventh round
• Won on points
• KO win in the second round

Will Donaire get lucky the second time around?

Filipino fighter Nonito Donaire is hoping he gets it right at the second time of asking against Naoya Inoue when he returns to Japan.

Donaire is as experienced as they come at this level, with his record already showing 42 wins against six defeats, with 28 wins by KO and just one defeat coming inside the distance. The only man to stop Donaire in a record stretching back to 2001 was Nicholas Walters in 2014.

We won’t read too much into that stoppage defeat as it came such a long time ago, and we’ve seen nothing from Donaire since that suggests he’s about to make a habit of being stopped. His last defeat came on points against Inoue in November 2019, and he has scored two KO wins since.

Last five results for Nonito Donaire

• KO win in the fourth round
• KO win in the fourth round
• Lost on points
• KO win in the sixth round
• KO win in the fourth round

Filipino Flash will start fast but Inoue will finish big

Donaire comes to Japan on the back of a solid run of form that has seen him win four of his last five, with Inoue inflicting the spare defeat. In those four wins, he has claimed each inside the distance, with none of those fights going beyond the sixth round.

If you intend to place a bet on Donaire, you may wish to follow his recent form, which gives you a few options on how to gamble this bout. You can back Donaire to win by KO/TKO yet again, and after losing the last match against Inoue, the visitor may want to go on the attack early.

This bout will be a rematch between Inoue and Donaire after the pair fought out a compelling grudge match at the same arena back in 2019. That bout went all the way to the judges with the scorecards that evening, handing the win to Naoya by margins of five rounds, one round and eight rounds.

There were some questionable scores recorded that night, and that has paved the way for the rematch. The first bout was a close contest, and a strong case could be made for Donaire getting a little closer than some of the cards suggested, but there was no doubting the winner.

Inoue will want to frank that form with another impressive win, and if he can do it inside the distance, he would prove that not only is he the best in the division but also that there’s no denying it. The fighting pride of Japan is ranked as the number one for a reason, and we’ll see why here.

Inoue vs. Donaire Betting Tip – Inoue to win via KO/TKO