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Naoya Inoue and Ramon Cardenas prove that boxing doesn’t need gimmicks, just well matched fights

It was as if Sunday night’s undisputed super bantamweight title fight reset boxing’s dial.

Following a weekend of gimmicks — spearheaded by a VIP-attended card in Times Square, New York, and a sparsely-attended breakfast fight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Naoya Inoue and Ramon Cardenas put on an all-action fight in Las Vegas, culminating in "The Monster” retaining his undisputed titles at the 122-pound limit.

Thanks to an eighth-round TKO, Inoue has now stopped his last 11 opponents — all in world championship contests. He last heard the final bell in 2019 after besting Nonito Donaire in the final of the World Boxing Super Series.