I got one!
This is a big one!
Congratulations!
Hey Ippo, you should leave the boat to the boss and me, and focus on boxing.
I can't.
But you have a match coming up
against the world champion.
Ippo-kun!
You've got a world title match?!
When?!
The day has come!
No, it's not like that.
I'll be fighting with the champion, but it's only a sparring match.
Oh, it's not a title match?
But that's still a big deal!
It'll be a good experience.
Good luck, Ippo-kun.
Yes, I'll give it my best!
So how strong is this Ricardo guy?
I can't even fathom that.
His record is 62-0.
That's unbelievable!
It's difficult enough just fighting sixty-two matches.
On top of that, he's never lost!
Right, right.
I see how great he is.
But sixty-two wins is only about five times the number of your wins—thirteen.
You don't have a twenty or thirtyfold difference.
Isn't it easier to think of it as fighting against five of yourself?
I've never thought of it that way.
Right, five of myself...
I-I beat one out of five when they simultaneously attack me.
You have quite an imagination...
But what matters is that you beat one.
That means you can return one punch for every five punches you take.
It's not that simple!
I'll be facing a historic super-champ!
I'll just be a child's toy to him!
I don't think so.
You are the champion of Japan, after all.
There's a limit to how tough a human can be, no matter how much you train yourself.
And the power behind your punches are beyond the human limit.
Even the world champion will go down if you connect one!
The world champion...
going down?
Show what you've got to the world's strongest man.
Yeah. I'll give it all I've got.
I want to see how I fare against the world now.
It's quite frightening since he's so incredible,
but it's such a rare opportunity.
I'll give it all I've got!
Th-There they are!
Go ask for comments!
Camera, ready!
The man leading the pack is Bill Stewart, the manager and trainer.
He's a super-trainer who's coached seven world champions.
And behind him...
the historic world hero making his first visit to Japan,
WBA Featherweight champion, Ricardo Martinez.
Hey Ippo!
It's finally the day you fight against the world champion.
I'm not really fighting him.
He hasn't had much time since he arrived in Japan,
so he might take one punch from you because of the jet lag.
D-Do you think so?
You idiot!
Don't take that seriously!
Go get ripped to shreds.
You look very serious.
Do you think you can do anything?
N-No, not at all.
I know that you want to test how well you'll fare,
but your opponent is a great champion. He's already a legendary figure even though he's still actively fighting.
It's not like we have any chance against him.
The champion may be surprised if you can even graze him with a punch.
I'll praise you if you can do that.
If I can graze him...
That sounds like a really low goal.
The spar is planned for three rounds.
If I make two-hundred shots in one round,
I can make six-hundred shots in three rounds.
At least one of those should graze him!
Yeah! I'll graze him!
I do have a bit of hope.
Even the champion would take some damage if the kid somehow lands a solid blow.
He'll be more than surprised.
There's a good chance that he may take a down.
Coach Kamogawa, Ippo-kun.
The spars against the Japanese rankers have already started.
How is Ricardo Martinez?
He does show some super techniques here and there...
He's totally going easy on them.
I came to check on him, but I have nothing to report back to Date.
Coach Nakadai.
Take a look for yourself.
OK.
It's making me nervous.
The world champion is in here...
the world's strongest man!
He's the real thing.
The legendary world champion...
is standing in front of me.
The second one is starting now.
H-Hello.
I-I will give this my best.
They're all like that.
There's no way the champion can get any motivation from them.
We can't blame them though.
He's more an idol than an opponent.
They're happy enough just to be able to stand in the same ring as him.
I know that sentiment well.
He's totally going easy on them.
I'm counting on you. You may be able to make the champion become serious.
I need at least some news to take back to Date.
He's in the same weight class as me.
He's also a little taller, but we have about the same build.
He's human too! Don't be scared!
Thank you.
Next one, please come up!
Okay!
Hello!
Kid!
In his uniform!
He's totally into this.
He's the Japanese champion.
I heard that he almost took Eiji Date down once too.
He's not wearing his headgear, so he must be trying to spar as though it were a real match.
I'll leave it up to you.
You can take him down, or you can just play with him.
Show him how big of a difference there is between him and the world champ.
It's unusual for me to get so excited.
My boxer is facing the world champion!
There's hope that there's a slim chance.
Japan's future hopeful against the world champion...
We could charge people to see this, even though it's just a sparring match.
Now that I'm facing him up close,
he seems so much bigger that it's hard to believe he's in the same weight class as me.
There's so much pressure.
Go, kid! Show him what you've got!
I'll set my pace before he can set his!
Go all out right from the start!
Makunouchi makes the first move!
I don't know how much of a match I'll be against him!
But I'll do all I can!
Left!
Nice speed!
No! It's a feint!
He feinted up, then went down!
It's the liver blow that he's good at!
He read my move!
An ordinary feint is no good against him!
The intention was good.
Keep that speed and stir up the champion!
If the vertical movement doesn't work, go horizontal!
Weave to the sides!
He's starting to weave.
He's moving like it's a real match!
Start with the peek-a-boo style, then step in while weaving to each side.
That style is similar to Mike Tyson's.
And I'm sure he's got power too.
This is a thrilling partner.
I'm sure I'll hit him if I keep punching!
I can set the pace if I can connect even one!
One!
Tw...
H-Huh? Something interfered with the one-two!
The champion's stance hasn't changed.
Was it his left? Or his right?
Which one was it?
It doesn't matter! I'll punch him once!
I'll set the pace!
Stay calm...
Stay calm!
Dodge his left as usual,
and get close to him!
He took another one!
He's taking every left jab.
His glove suddenly became big!
I can't figure out when I should step in!
Why is it so easy for Ricardo? Is there some trick?
There's no trick; he's not cheating at all.
None?
It's nearly impossible for any human to dodge a punch if he reacts after he sees it coming.
That's when experience comes into play: Making predictions.
You figure out the next punch from movements in the opponent's elbow and shoulder.
However, the champion's blows are made without any wasted movements in the elbow or shoulder,
but by using the shortest distance possible.
In other words, it's impossible to predict.
It's the opposite of a trick; it's the most basic form of a jab.
You can't do that unless you check your own form thousands of times in front of a mirror.
Even his jab is first class.
H-Hey, is he getting damaged?
But Makunouchi is known for his toughness.
The champion has only thrown left jabs so far!
But his left jab is very damaging.
A Mexicans' punches reach farther than normal.
Because they land when the opponent's body is already stretched back, the damage can't be absorbed.
He needs to do something, or he'll get beaten with only left jabs.
No way... Ippo-kun is getting beaten with just left jabs?
His left jabs give lasting damage.
He'll really knock me out if I keep taking them.
I'm trying so hard...
but I can't hit him at all!
Not even once!
The champion has only thrown left jabs, but I can't do anything.
The difference is this big?
This huge?!
The damage is starting to show.
This is bad.
He'll really get beaten with just left jabs.
Pathetic...
How pathetic is this?!
Just one shot... make at least one shot...
that can surprise them!
He's got one!
The kid has one weapon that can surprise the champion!
I have to stop trying to dodge his blows...
because I don't have the ability to do it!
I'll block each one instead.
He's closing in while blocking every blow.
A little closer...
He closed the gap!
He patiently took it to an in-fight!
Now!
There it is!
Dempsey roll!
That's it!
Users of the Dempsey roll are far and few between throughout the world!
Not even the champion will be able to react against movements he's never seen before!
Against that, even the champion might...
Maybe I'll connect one if I stir him up this much!
Go, kid!
N-No way! He connected his jabs amidst the side-to-side motion!
He can even see such fast motion?!
H-He's too good...
I'm at a loss for words.
C-Champion? The spar is not over yet.
Ricardo said that he has no intention of crushing the Japanese champion.
He only wanted to test his left jabs today.
The test went well, so he doesn't need to go on.
Kid, get dressed. Let's head back.
Kid!
What are you doing?! It's over, kid!
We're heading back!
Coach?
Was he unconscious?
And the champion was aware of that?
He showed mercy by not knocking him out in front of this crowd.
Go thank the champion.
Oh, so it's over.
Thank you.
This is huge!
The world champion is strong!
He easily defeats the Japan champion using only left jabs!
Sounds like they'll have big articles about this in the sports section tomorrow.
Yes...
It's okay.
I didn't expect that you had any chance of winning today.
It's good enough that we could see how high the world-class level is.
The level?
You felt it yourself, didn't you?
To be honest, no.
I couldn't see anything since I couldn't do anything.
He was too strong. The gap was too great.
I couldn't do anything.
I didn't expect to see a Dempsey roll in the Orient.
That actually shocked me. He had power too.
Didn't he even scare you for a moment?
No, never mind.
You never are shocked, no matter who the opponent is or what the opponent does.
Eiji Date will also learn how high the peak of the world is.
Ippo, what happened to your face?
Go look at yourself in the mirror! It's really bad.
Th-This is bad.
Only from one round, and he only used left jabs.
This is the world's best left jab...
Can Date-san win?
I can't imagine that champion losing.
I just can't...
It's there, in huge print.
Got shut out with left jabs?
At least make him use both fists.
You shamed Japan!
Date-san will feel a lot of pressure if he reads this!
S-Sorry.
Go apologize to the old geezer, not me!
Go now and apologize.
Right...
But I just don't know how...
Just go!
I'm dreading this.
I'm sure my face will show how powerful the champion's left jabs are.
And what should I say to him?
What now?
A sparring match?
Date-san!
He looks cool with a thick beard!
Who's his partner?
No ordinary boxer is good enough.
Miyata-kun!
The OPBF champion is perfect for this!
Also, Miyata-kun's left jabs take the shortest route from that position.
It's just like the champion's left jabs.
But he's dodging them!
And he's retaliating without hesitating.
He couldn't have done that if he couldn't see the punch.
Wow...
Maybe Takamura-san sent me here to show me this awesome spar.
Miyata-kun is totally serious.
Perhaps this is the match that'll decide the best featherweight fighter in the country!
He's not taking any left jabs.
At that rate he'll be able to handle the champion's left jabs too.
He's better than me when it comes to jabs.
I don't have any time to attempt a counter.
Then...
He took it to an in-fight!
They're both giving super-fast blows,
but Miyata-kun is better when it comes to speed.
The faster he goes...
Thanks, Orient champ. That was a good spar.
That gave me some good hints.
But I can still go on!
Date-san!
He was dominating this match.
I'm in my best condition, not having done the weight control, yet he easily took me down.
He really knocked me down with that shot.
Even Miyata-kun was taken out so easily.
Unbelievable.
He's strong!
Date-san is totally different compared to when I fought him.
At this rate, he can dominate the world champion.
No, the world champion is strong too.
But so is Date-san!
I don't get it!
You saw that?
U-Um... Well...
Did you see it?
Man, you saw an embarrassing moment.
B-But it really was an incredible spar!
It really was awesome.
There was nothing awesome about it.
I'll tell you then.
He would have knocked me out if we had continued.
I'm still feeling dizzy.
Me too.
I almost got knocked out by the world champion.
Same as you.
Show-off.
But...
Japan champion, The OPBF champion...
We both have our titles, but we've still got a long way to go.
Yeah. I realize that.
Yeah.
They showed that to us.
The world is vast.