We will now commence the 12-round OPBF title match!
The challenger is now entering from the blue corner.
He was an aspiring boxer as a rookie, using an unmatched skill of counters,
but he lost during the first tournament.
After that, he vanished from the Japanese boxing scene for over a year.
Now he has returned, surpassing the domestic boxing level.
He's currently positioned in first place in the OPBF.
The genius, Miyata Ichiro, has returned!
Miyata-kun!
Ichiro! Please win it!
Don't get hit in the face!
Man, he's wildy popular.
Yeah.
And here's another fanatic fan.
Mi! Ya! Ta! Kun!
And here comes the champion.
His record is 15-2 after seventeen matches.
He's a hard puncher, winning twelve out of fifteen with KO's.
Will he crush the challenger's ambition using his hooks, where his nickname "Crocodile" comes from?
This is the OPBF champion, Arnie "Crocodile" Gregory!
That's pretty cool!
Man, he looks strong.
You have sure got some style, American.
He's from Australia.
What? But he's a blond!
The US is outside of the OPBF region.
Did you see that, Ippo?
Yes.
The casual right swing was hella fast.
He's here in his best condition.
He'll go all out from the first round.
He has class too.
I can feel a sort of aura that says he's strong.
And his records are real.
He's never lost a match by getting KO'd.
A tough enemy, huh?
The boxers return to their corners.
His skin's looking better now than at the time of the weight check,
but there's no way he can completely recover in a day.
Cheap plating will come off easily.
We don't need to wait for the plating to come off.
I'll take him down in the first round.
Check things out at first.
See how he starts things, then learn his timings and habits.
Okay, Dad.
The time has come for the OPBF title match.
The gong has now...
been hit!
Will the genius of Japan rule the Orient, and make this his first step towards the world?
Or will the jaws of the crocodile destroy the flesh of the challenger?
It's a battle between the razor-sharp counter
and bone-crushing power.
We can't take our eyes off of this one.
Wow!
The champion storms in!
The challenger was caught off-guard!
Right!
Miyata-kun's expression changed!
It was that powerful of a blow.
Watch out, Ichiro!
He continues to attack!
The challenger's already been pushed against the ropes!
He's got quick feet.
There's no time to counter them.
He has a fast rhythm too.
A careless punch will lead to a counterblow.
He's... strong.
He's got good eyes.
He sure is good at dodging.
But how long will you last?
You've been restless from the beginning, Champion.
A flash of a counter, and he's already gone.
He's lightning fast.
This is the best part of Miyata Ichiro.
Wh-What did he just do? I couldn't see it.
It was a right-hand counter, like this!
Idiots.
It was a left short straight,
but it was so fast that an amateur couldn't see it.
The champion must be shocked too.
He was on offense, then a moment later, the opponent disappeared.
I've never seen a boxer who could completely disappear from my sight.
It seems like I seriously need to reconsider his level.
This challenger...
is strong.
The champion took the standard stance.
He's now ready to go all-out.
He tried to give a hard blow to the young challenger, who's in a title match for the first time,
to take him down both physically and emotionally.
But that's not how things turned out.
Miyata doesn't get tense from nervousness.
And the champion actually received a hard punch himself.
There's no more slacking from this point on.
The champion will give his best too.
His best...
Ichiro!
I know.
We check things out in the first round, right?
Now, how will you move, Arnie?
Left!
He's clearly faster than earlier!
Much sharper!
Miyata takes a hit!
He couldn't evade that!
That reached further than I thought.
Then I'll dodge them with steps and not sways!
The champion goes ahead of the challenger, giving him his left!
The challenger's caught again!
Not bad. He predicted my side-step.
His jaw's facing upward!
Even the jabs are powerful!
Wow, was that damaging?
I thought he was an in-fighter, taking people down with hooks,
but he's a real champion; he can out-fight too.
Left! Left! Left!
The champion gives no time to fight back!
It's as if the champion's daring him to counter.
With such a fast succession of compact jabs, one can do nothing other than defend.
It'll be tough to time those punches right.
Watch carefully, Ippo.
This is one way to seal counters.
He can't come out of the neutral corner.
The challenger's unable to use his speed.
What now?
A jab grazes over his head!
Now what?!
Dad, I've checked things out for long enough, haven't I?
He goes on to a punching match!
He challenges the powerful champion head-on!
Exchanging blows instead of using his feet?!
He's getting hit!
That's reckless, Miyata!
No, calm down and look closely.
At that close range,
against that quick champion...
He easily made a counter!
He advances!
He pushes the champion back!
He has successfully moved out of the corner!
The challenger shows his power!
Oh my god...
Does Miyata...
...see those jabs like they're in slow motion?!
A-Amazing.
He showed his jabs too much.
He did?
The real scary part of Miyata is how quickly he learns things.
Once he takes a blow, he instantly learns the timing.
He will most definitely start throwing counters, starting with the next shot.
So he can return double the damage if we keep giving him the same blow.
Miyata will connect his punch first even if we throw punches at the same time.
He's at a higher level of speed.
Miyata lowered his guard.
That's...
an offensive stance, a variation of the Detroit style, with more weight on the front.
The atmosphere...
is getting tense.
We can't tell what will happen next.
A unique feeling like this is always there in a match with counter-punchers,
but I've never seen a boxer
who can silence the entire hall.
Both make a move simultaneously!
The champion's left!
Miyata cuts him down!
It's his trump card, the cross-counter!
Both make a move simultaneously!
The champion's left!
Miyata cuts him down!
It's his trump card, the cross-counter!
He swiftly knocked down the OPBF champion!
Good going, Miyata!
Miyata-kun!
Ichiro! Wonderful!
One!
Can the champion get up?
Two!
Arnie!
Three!
Don't get up! Let it end!
Four!
Arnie's left grazed my cheek.
Five!
I took him down, but that was so close.
Stand up, Arnie!
Six!
Do you want things to end already?!
So early?!
Don't get up!
Stay down!
Seven!
He's up!
But he's showing damage. Can he continue?
He's not so weak to get knocked out with one blow.
But I expect no less from a champion.
I'm up. I can go on.
If he doesn't get knocked out with one,
I'll keep taking him down until he stays down.
Box!
The match continues!
But there's the gong.
He could not add any more damage,
but the challenger finished the round with a huge lead.
Good job, Miyata!
It was close!
Finish him next round!
You can get the belt!
That was a good start, Ichiro-kun!
The champion took serious damage!
We're almost even.
But didn't we take a definite lead?
We are clearly deficient when it comes to power.
We've just overcome it with speed.
And we're pretty close with the speed too.
I could only use that counter because he used his left a lot,
giving me time to learn its timing.
We can't expect any less from the title holder.
Yeah, he's strong.
And he hasn't shown everything he has yet.
We should also assume that he can recover quickly too.
It'll be bad if the match drags on.
Finish it off while he still carries the damage!
I've learned the rhythm of his left punch.
I'll cover them with my right every time.
I couldn't see his right cross.
That one was real bad.
Don't talk. Catch your breath.
Damn it!
I took a full hit.
Don't get angry. Calm down.
I'm calm, Mr. Sakaguchi!
Why do you think I put the bait out?
I only took a scratch because the target was quicker than I expected.
But that scratch also gave me confidence...
that he'll come and bite the bait again.
And I'll catch him then.
When he uses the cross-counter,
that cross will be covered with his blood.
Bloody Cross!
Round Two!
Box!
The champion's still hurt!
It's your chance!
Yeah!
Take him down before he recovers!
The challenger steps in!
How will he attack the still-damaged champion?!
A rush!
He doesn't wait for a counter, and initiates his offense!
H-He's fast...
That's another good thing about Miyata.
He has awesome counters, but he doesn't rely on them.
He can pressure the opponent, and not turn defensive.
But I still think he's a stickler about them.
He will finish it with a counter.
He has that much sentiment toward counters.
I have my finishing blow, a counter.
Without relying on power,
I will KO anyone with it.
Yes, I know he'll finish the match with a counter.
The champion desperately fights back!
But his left strikes the air in vain!
That's incredible...
The champion's not going easy on him at all.
But he can still dodge them so easily?
That's so graceful.
Those are good lefts.
They are closer to straights than jabs.
I can determine the power from the sound too.
I'm sure you can beat your opponents with that alone,
except for me!
The champion's left!
Now!
He puts his right over it!
It's an artistic cross!
Bloody Cross.
Wow! The challenger's head has been thrown back!
It's the challenger who took the damage!
Wh...
What just happened?
The challenger's down!
The counter was unsuccessful!
No way!
I thought Miyata's counter connected!
The timing was perfect!
I really thought it connected.
Why is Miyata-kun down?
Can the challenger get up?
One!
Or will he lose this battle now?
Two!
Three!
What just happened?
Did I miss the timing?
I thought I countered him.
Why am I down?
Four!
Get up! You're only in the second round!
Calm down!
Get back up!
Miyata-kun! Come on!
Calm down! I just misaimed.
Five!
Counters always carry risks.
Focus!
For sure this time...
Six!
I'll nail him!
He's up!
Box!
The champion storms in right away without a break!
Can the challenger evade him until he recovers from the damage?
How many are there in this hall who could follow what exactly happened?
Go!
You have the sure-killer, the counter!
You can turn the match around even after a couple mistakes!
It wasn't a mistake!
Both his speed and timing were perfect.
It wasn't a mistake?
The majority of people must be thinking that he took the left blow by mistake.
That probably includes Ichiro.
It was that unexpected.
Why did the champion throw so many lefts, fully knowing he's slower than Ichiro?
Why does he repeatedly use the same punch against the counter-puncher with a fast learning ability?
We should have questioned that earlier.
We should have realized this trick sooner.
I must start over again.
Sense his rhythm.
The challenger takes some space.
Maybe he's recovered from the damage.
He's quick on his feet again.
Left!
But he dodges with a head-slip!
What a graceful move.
The challenger's out-fighter speed really shines.
Yes, that's it.
Look carefully, Miyata.
Those lefts must look like delicous bait.
Come and bite it.
This is it!
I can take him down if I step in with this timing!
I'll go for it when he throws another left.
He's ready!
Keep your eyes open and watch carefully.
When Miyata's right draws a cross against the champion's left,
that cross will get covered in red...
with Miyata's blood.
Blood?
Blood-covered cross?
The champion's left!
Could...
it be...
Here it is!
Bloody Cross?!
The razor-sharp finishing blow!
The timing is perfect!
I got it!
He bent his elbow,
and changed the course of the punch!
It wasn't my mistake!
He was after my counter!
The champion's right knocks Miyata's head all the way back!
And a left!
It was intentional!
Right!
That left was a lure to make me use my counter!
It was all to let me learn the timing!
He was throwing them intentionally!
A rush from both sides!
The challenger takes blow after blow!
He can't stay up!
The challenger takes the second down!
The champion shows his true power!
Man, that was a bad one.
One!
The canvas is getting covered in red.
Two!
Is there any hope of him getting back up?
Three!
He exploited the power used for the counter.
This is really bad.
Bloody Cross is a perfect name for that.
Stop being impressed, and start cheering!
This is very serious!
But it was impressive.
It's a rarely seen, super-high technique.
Takamura-san?
To shove the cross-counter with his left elbow,
and to land a blow on the wide-open jaw with the right.
It's a counter-killer with a simple trick.
But how difficult is it to do that in a split second?
You should be able to tell that too, being a boxer.
This champion is strong!
If you want to avenge Miyata, be ready.
Avenge?
What do you mean?
What are you talking about?
The match hasn't ended yet!
There's no place in this match for me!
Miyata-kun won't end it like this!
Wow!
He's hitting the mat, letting his frustration out.
This is a rare scene, coming from this smart boxer.
Ichiro...
Damn it!
How dare he come after my counter.
Nothing can be more mortifying than this!
It felt like he took me and my pride, all together!
I can't lose like this!