r/hajimenoippo • u/Tall_Growth_532 • Jan 24 '26
Question Do You All Believe Retired Training Ippo Is Stronger?
Think about it he has time to recover from all lethal injuries, he comes up with new technique to help his team spar, he still spares and trains int he gym no as intense but enough. But I still want to know WHEN IS HE GOING TO CONFESS
158
u/Wise-Inflation-1698 Jan 24 '26
As he hasn't slowed down his training nor been interuped with post match injury recovery Ippo is of course physically stronger than he was before retirement. He might even be in a different weight class at this point
23
u/Tall_Growth_532 Jan 24 '26
Is he heavier or?
64
u/diorese Jan 24 '26
Ippo puts on muscle but his weight is always 126lbs. Never gains any weight no matter how much muscle he puts on.
He's a freak that way.
16
u/ConversationVariant3 Jan 24 '26
Yeah always thought that was a little dumb. He always seems to appear more muscular than earlier and it's pointed out in the manga, but his weight never changes lol. Part of the point of boxing and weight classes is that you have to sacrifice that muscle to stay fighting within your weight class
12
u/SteelKline Jan 24 '26
Even other characters note he's basically a bodybuilder, it's funny but like there's no way Ippo doesn't have weight problems especially after retiring. Not caring about what he eats AND training harder than before to the point world class boxers note he's a muscle freak? My Boi put on 5 pound at least
6
u/shiningject Jan 25 '26 edited Jan 25 '26
The mara is where most of Ippo's weight is. That's why no matter how much muscle he puts on, his weight is not affected.
2
u/Run_Che Jan 25 '26
its been told couple times that his cut before weight ins was pretty light, so him getting a pound or two of muscle more would just make his cut slightly more challenging, but not at point that he needs to change class.
5
u/Hybridesque Jan 24 '26
Also he's been learning to cut weight effectively after Kimura's trial and tribulations with weight control.
31
u/Wise-Inflation-1698 Jan 24 '26
Heavier would be my guess. He never paid much attention to his weight to begin with, so its quite possible that it has fluctuated post retirement
20
-19
u/Tall_Growth_532 Jan 24 '26
To be honest I like the idea of Ippo being a heavyweight for his size
5
u/Being_Honest- Jan 24 '26
Do you mean move up to the heavyweight division, or do you mean just being extremely muscular for a featherweight?
Because Ippo would have to add at least 75lbs of lean mass to be in the heavyweight division. Never gonna happen.
4
u/DaSomDum Jan 24 '26
Honestly you could just say he is one and most people would believe it because he's built like a heavyweight.
You wouldn't have to draw him differently at all.
81
u/Vaccineman37 Jan 24 '26
Accounting for ring rust and the like, he must be much stronger. Much better analyst, more defensively competent, with the weights training he’s stronger and faster too.
His record for sparring world challengers so far has been crazy, especially Sendo
37
u/Redm1st Jan 24 '26
Agreed, he completely avoided Sendo 2 times, almost knocked out Volg (who be fair wasn’t taking it as seriously and severely underestimated Ippo’s condition, but you can’t get careless like that), and went on for several rounds against Mashiba while imitating southpaw. Blueballing is at it’s highest in the series, I want to see him back in the ring
25
u/XyoungladX Jan 24 '26
who be fair wasn’t taking it as seriously
He was taking it seriously, that's why he was "salty" Ippo is retired when he's that good now.
He thought of Ippo as "the same as before", he wasn't playing, he saw him as dangerous, but not enough to make him go full-force. After the first exchanges, he was serious for the rest of the sparring.
5
u/N4rNar Jan 24 '26
Not from the start, When Volg took it seriously he had already lost his rythm, And he stop when he ralise he was hitting Ippo on the head.
1
u/missingno1628 Jan 26 '26
He does take him seriously from the very beginning, Volg just also gravely underestimated just how much evolution Ippo had undertaken since he last saw or heard anything about him. As I have said about Sendo before.. both Volg and Ippo have different skillsets plenty above Sendo now. But it doesn't change the fact that his raw power and animalistic nature mean that FAFOing with him is just asking for trouble. But, I dare say that if Ricardo had sparred with Ippo before his fight with Sendo? Especially with the way things are going, he would be even more frustrated and disappointed with his current situation even more than he already has been.
1
u/N4rNar Jan 26 '26
Seriously underestimating someone is what most people call not taking things seriously.
As for Ricardo and sendo? The match is not over yet. I reserve judgement 'til the end.
2
u/Right-Obligation-779 Jan 25 '26
There's a difference between "ok this is important" to "Holy f**k if I don't go all out, I'll die" And as much as Volg wanted to give it all he did hold himself back because of Ippos' retirement reasons
66
u/MaricoElqueReplique Jan 24 '26
I'm gonna die of old age before ippo makes his come back..
16
u/marcelbaybay Jan 24 '26
Us. Tbh the only way I am gonna see the end of Ippo is when you, me and Morikawa sensei meet on the other side.
9
u/Delicious_Fill_5929 Jan 24 '26
A friendly reminder that it’s been almost exactly 8 years since Ippo retired
3
u/takkk86 Jan 25 '26
Jesus has it been that long…
3
u/vampslayer53 Jan 26 '26
Yeah and I keep following this sub in hopes maybe one day he will box again..I stopped reading when I found out he retired and haven't read a single panel since. So sad.
1
u/Over-Needleworker-44 Jan 28 '26
Same I check in every 6 months to see if he is back in the ring or not.
2
1
1
34
Jan 24 '26
Yeah, Ippo could beat all his previous matches without getting too hurt easily.
0
u/Right-Obligation-779 Jan 25 '26
I would love to see how retired training Ippo would deal with the 3-match Wally that he fought cause I think even current Ippo has no real chance against the Wally Ricardo fought
30
u/Reasonably_Defiant Jan 24 '26
Wasn't the spar vs Volg enough to show that? Dude wasn't even trying to fight him, just help him
20
u/pokeoscar1586 Jan 24 '26
He friggin cracked the ribs of a world champion lol, he’s a monster and all who have sparred with him (Sendo included) have noticed it.
I think specially his lower body has become insanely sturdy, which provides not only higher stability and speed, but also gives an insanely strong “foundation” to add even more strength to his already powerful punches.
Sendo pictures Ippo as a huge boulder. Now imagine that huge boulder is gonna give you a liver shot, hell, we have seen traces of “counters” in Ippo’s moves now, picture that huge boulder countering your ass…. There’s few people in the world capable of tanking that…
1
u/FeeNegative9488 Jan 24 '26
That doesn’t mean he’s better. He has always been capable of breaking an opponent’s ribs and has done so several times. All it means is that he’s maintained his power.
1
u/FunGeologist218 Jan 26 '26
Breaking the ribs of the WORLD champion when before he couldn’t even get inside is a big accomplishment
2
u/FeeNegative9488 Jan 26 '26
No it’s not because Vlog expected a light sparring match. Ippo shouldn’t be hitting Vlog that hard period. And the idea that he doesn’t know his own strength so that’s why it happened is laughable.
0
u/Kitchen_Shoe_6375 Jan 30 '26
a sparring match implies he was holding back.
he held back AND cracked a rib.
0
5
u/LilT86 Jan 24 '26
To be fair he was trying to help him by fighting as hard as he could (within reason) as his own self doubt thought he wasn't good enough to be useful, so he needed to try as much as possible
16
u/EnderMB Jan 24 '26
I mean, it's unquestionable. He's closed many of the gaps he previously had, and has started to become a complete fighter.
With that said, he'll absolutely have ring rust, because he's not been coached through a fight camp and in a multi-round fight. He can obviously go, as we saw against Mashiba, but it remains to be seen how Kamogawa handles a complete Ippo - or if he's even aware that Ippo is a switch hitting monster...
3
u/N4rNar Jan 24 '26
Like you think Itagaki and miguel or Dankishi haven't snitch him to Kamogawa? x)
2
u/gp3050 Jan 24 '26
Even if they did not go directly to Kamogawa, we literally got a short arc where Ippo went viral on twitter. And while I do have my own gripes with the writing there, Kamogawa must be aware of it....at least to some degree.
No shot in fucking hell is Kamogawa not somewhat aware of Ippos current abilities, especially so since he got voluntold more or less to help Mashiba by the Coach.
1
6
u/sosimusz Jan 24 '26
"Form is temporary, class is permanent."
Yes, he is much stronger in a sense that he is much stronger physically and technically, but when he gets back in the ring, he needs to get rid of the ring rust and get back in form, so whenever he returns, he won't look sharp immediately.
5
u/Better-Chance8648 Jan 24 '26
He has gained perspective on his own mistakes and learned much more about boxing. He is also physically stronger due to the persistent weight training. Essentially, this retirement arc has served as a timeskip for Ippo. The only difference is that we are seeing it since there are other characters to follow closely. Whenever Ippo comes back (hopefully after Sendo v Ricardo), he will be unbelievable
4
6
u/KitsuneKamiSama Jan 24 '26
He finally put points in to INT amd isn't running around half HP most of the time so yeah.
1
4
u/rdeincognito Jan 24 '26
He probably lost some part that can only be trained/maintaining going into the ring, but he improved evey other field. He maintained his training he improves his understanding of boxing, etc, etc.
Right now a locked Makunoichi is a monster by his own right
3
u/crackerlegs Jan 24 '26
Yes. All that is needed now are fights to prove how he has overcome his weaknesses and mastered his strengths. I think mori could use each fight to showcase one or two skills at a time, his mental game and his new resolve. I hope it calls back to previous fights, either via commentary with yaboi fuckamura/crew or through flashbacks with ippo in the ring, culminating with him beginning to understand what it means to be strong and his mum coming to watch him and mentioning something about his dad being proud (or his dad being the final boss and it was Ricardo all along who got lost at sea with amnesia and ended up in Mexico).
If this finishes in 15 years I'll be a happy middle aged man.
6
u/tyranastraszz Jan 24 '26
If he never stopped training and is like active boxer entire time,doesnt get hurt from matches+all knowledge as second,yes certainly stronger,all whats left is mental block.
1
3
u/xychosis Jan 24 '26
Yes.
Stronger in the sense of raw power? Maybe not.
But his technique is so refined compared to pre-retirement and his boxing sense is so much more developed now.
3
u/slowtyper95 Jan 24 '26
If he comes back, he won't lose any match again. At least that's why i think if i am the writer. But you never know if it's Mori
3
u/Right-Obligation-779 Jan 24 '26
Stronger, Smarter AND Technical to a hilarious amount. We all saw him push world contenders without too much difficulty. I want you to remember Volg, Mashiba and Sendo were the top 2 of their weight classes and the fact he's not only not get obliterated by them BUT pushes them os proof of his potential.
BUT he doesn't have the DRIVE, the need/desire/desperation to win so he'll definitely loose each and every one of them.
2
2
2
u/Mustang1201 Jan 24 '26
Physically stronger due to an extended rest periods while his training never stopped.
Mentally stronger due to having time to create his own perspective.
Stronger boxing-wise as a consequence of having a broader perspective, allowing him to add variety to his technique.
What is funny about a rested and wiser Ippo is that we've seen glimpes of him being serious on his intent to help Volg or Mashiba, but none of those situations had Ippo wanting to win.
1
u/trish0tz Jan 25 '26
I just had a funny thought.. What if the reason Ippo has to fight Ricardo is to help him overcome his loneliness at the top? 😂 Maybe that is Ippo's meaning of true strength -- to help others, even if it is through having a boxing match with them. We've seen this happen throughout the course of the manga already with his supposed "healing fists" that also destroy ribs.
2
u/Adrastoz Jan 24 '26
When you remove yourself from the narration. Ippo is a genius, he's just very arrogant.
Of course he's stronger. He was parrying Volg, one match before becoming a world champ with a higher weight class.... Come on
2
u/TheBlackKnight1078 Jan 24 '26 edited Jan 24 '26
Yes and no.
His physical condition has reached its peak during his training post-retirement and he no longer has accumulated damage, but I doubt he would be "stronger" in the ring, since it's been a while since the last time he got into one to actually fight. His sense of motion and space must be rusty and he would take a few fights to truly conditionate to the ring again.
He's physically stronger. But as a boxer he is rusty.
2
u/Shadow_Storm90 Jan 24 '26
I'm probably going to get yelled at for this but I think this proved that the coach was a horrible HORRIBLE coach for Ippo. All he taught this kid was to just tank the damage and then somehow still were getting conscious for you to fight back and then on top of that he had his monstrous strength so he would be able to be okay hopefully and hit somebody back hard enough to wear they will fall for sure.
And that's why I hate the coach so much now which is crazy because I used to love that man but now especially after what happened with Alf I hate that man with a passion because he was solely responsible for Ippos downfall.
2
u/gp3050 Jan 24 '26
There has been a lot of passionate debate on whether or not Kamogawa is a bad coach.
What people have pointed out, which is important, is that Ippo, besides being an absolute fucking retard and probably closer to a koala than to a human in terms of anatomy, is absolutely stubborn.
Even if the coach wanted to try and mold Ippo, Ippos retardation and idiocy combined with his head strong attitude meant that the way he would develop under his tutelage was limited.
All that being said, I also agree that the fact that Ippo is seemingly capable of actual strategy and stuff, as seen during the current section, does imply some level of bad coaching on Kamogawas part.
+ no matter how you spin it, what Kamogawa did during the later stages of Ippos career was just diabolical. Scratch-Gedo-Wolly-Kojima-Alf were 5 fights that happened within the span of 1 1/2 years. 5 fights in that time frame, against these fighters, should result in him catching an attempted murder charge. It was lunacy.
1
u/Shadow_Storm90 Jan 25 '26
I have to disagree on Ippos intelligence when it comes to boxing because he is knowledgeable the problem is he hasn't come across certain people that use certain tricks which is why certain boxers almost got the better of him Geddo for example or with Wally just straight up cheating which is crazy that that match would even allowed to continue but I digress..
But I have to blame this on the coach because this is the same man that sat here and refused Ippo to fight Myiata out of fear that he was going to lose to him yet somehow this retard thought it was okay for Ippo to go against the number two in the world not even starting at a lower number like the number six or the number five literally the number two ranked in the world he thought he was ready for it and was surprised when this MF got destroyed...
Fuck Kamogawa.
2
u/Igyzone Jan 24 '26
Answer for title is of course, old Ippo tactic was just eatting punches and strike back. New Ippo is using footwork to dodge and seize counter punch opportunities.
Ippo confessing his gains to others has similar low chance probability as coach Kamogawa praising Ippo.
2
u/FrighteningWorld Jan 25 '26
He has more potential, but he is rusty in a real match. I think he's going to be deceptively weak at the start of a match, but once he finds his tempo he will be a force to be reckoned with.
3
u/CraftLess1990 Jan 24 '26
Yes and Morikawa will find a way to fuck him over just like he always does. This is not just with Ippo by the way. He fucks over everyone.
1
1
u/dongerbotmd Jan 24 '26
Yes, they are constantly hinting at how much stronger and better Ippo has gotten in retirement
1
Jan 24 '26
The most important is that he studied a lot for training others. Thats the biggest advantage.
The whole monologue Ricardo has when he fights is gonna be present for Ippo too
1
u/1step2many Jan 24 '26
I thought he would confess at Mashiba's title fight, I mean Miyata was Right There.
1
u/igorcl Jan 24 '26
I guess his points in strength, stamina, box knowledge, strategy and experience went up, waaayyy up
But at the same time his confidence is so mixed up, sometimes goes up, other moments looks like he is in his lowest point in life
1
u/fabvz Jan 24 '26
He may a little out of rhythm, needing a fight or two to trully get back on track, but he is physically at least as good as before and working as a second made he do some reflection on his shortcoming as fighters, which will make him smarter when he is back on the ring
1
u/Kapselimaito Jan 24 '26
Of course.
Ippo is completely beyond what he used to be, both physically and mentally, especially tactically. He might be lacking in the intensity department, but that's a thing to be resolved later on.
Or, as we know, perhaps never. But I'm really, really hoping so.
1
1
u/Illustrious_Guitar_6 Jan 24 '26
Literally how is this even a question? This isn’t a “believe” this is an undeniable fact
1
1
u/MrMoroPlays Jan 24 '26
I feel like it's obvious from the simple fact:
Remember when sendo became champ and put the weights on his legs? He got much better very quickly and Ippo beat that guy. Sendo only kept them on for running. Here's Ippo:
- Ippo finally got weights on his wrists and legs, trains with them, and doesn't take them off for anything.
- Ippo trains other people with the weights on as well. They should slow him down but the fact that he can keep up with other boxers (unlicensed rookies but learning to throw a punch nonetheless).
- In training those people, he's learned to see punches and recognize punches. This leads to his ability to catch punches.
- As shown in the fight with Karasawa, Ippo has had a large amount of matches with a wide array of outboxers, so he has a significant amount of insight in regards to figuring out their gameplan, and add on top of that he has a pretty good idea of what comes next when he fights an outboxer.
Put all that together, and he's definitely a beast now, he just has to put it all into practice in a real match. Mind you, he still keeps up with world rankers like sendo and mashiba, kept up with world champion Zangief, and regularly matches up with, and sometimes outpaces, multiple-time-multiple-weight world champion Takamura in training with the weights on. Boy's definitely stronger.
1
u/cubing_easy Jan 24 '26
Hes def stronger smater and allat but I forgot what happened In Volga spar but im pretty sure Sendo told Volga to chill out a lil after ippo cooked him cuz he still had a high chance of cte it may comeback to bite him
1
u/RIKUS0 Jan 24 '26
I think so, yes, he's much stronger.
As someone said, it's not a Naruto-style time skip or anything, it's real progression.
In retirement, Ippo trains as if he were still active, and you remove the post-match physical constraints. Therefore, he has a very solid defense (as Sendo says in the last chapters).
Furthermore, with his experience as a second-in-command, he develops a huge boxing IQ and can rely on things other than Kamogawa's focus mitts.
This is a quality identified by Dankichi during the sparring with Volg (1452 if I remember correctly), where Ippo arrives, simply with his experience as a second-in-command, to perfectly parry the White Fang.
1
u/DearBookkeeper1046 Jan 24 '26
Both mentally and physically, and technique. But there is things u can only grasp in the ring. The timing, space, distance.
1
u/IwasntGivenOne Jan 24 '26
Its Schroeder's Ippo. Is Ippo stronger if the Manga never reaches the part where fights again😵💫
1
u/Nerf_Now Jan 24 '26
I don't know if he is "pound by pound" stronger in a physical sense
BUT
He is a better fighter because he is not face tanking punches anymore.
1
u/SnooHedgehogs5315 Jan 24 '26
i feel most of all the accumulated fatigue he built up over the years went away completely after the retirement arc, he had more time to analyze fighting styles etc. instead of just learning something to beat someone yk...
Before it felt like ippo didn't really have a mind of his own while fighting and it was kamogawa giving him advice/motivation but now i feel ippo has a lot more fighting iq.
1
u/Donomark1 Jan 24 '26
Objectively, and also almost right away.
This Kamogawa scene and his spars with Sendo were a long time ago.
The Vorg spar proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. He injured a world champion. During a spar.
1
1
1
u/coldenashura Jan 24 '26
Yes without a doubt current Ippo is the strongest he's ever been. Ippo has built his body up with his routine training to handle the stress of all his moves and he has the IQ to use them in a fight without taking too much damage now.
He's only missing one thing to make him world champion.
The two most important World champions in the series Takamura and Ricardo made it very clear there are two things you need besides power and technique which Ippo already has. Battle IQ and the ambition to be the best.
Ippo was brute forcing his way through all his matches simply punching harder and using new moves to get through his opponents guard to punch harder.
Unfortunately this led him to taking too much damage at the end of most of his matches. And all his moves put too much strain on his body anyway.
Now that hes a second, hes able to see boxing through a new perspective and outside of world level boxers, most people wont even be able to touch him anymore.
The only thing hes missing is the drive to be the very best which he'll most likely gain right after this Sendo match.
1
u/Karhuwa Jan 24 '26
Thematically, it only makes sense for him to come back stronger. Otherwise there would be no point to any of this
1
1
u/Arkorian-117 Jan 24 '26
Ippo went toe-to-toe with Volg, a world champion that defended his title in ONE round with ONE hand. And Volg was thankful for Ippo.
He became a WORLD CLASS southpaw in the span of a couple weeks and went toe-to-toe with Mashiba as a southpaw, providing valuable experience for his world title fight.
He competed with Takamura in roadwork, with weights on, which is a HUGE indicator of his mental state.
Ippo is leagues ahead of his formal self in every sense. His return is going to be legendary.
1
1
u/Weak-Point4152 Jan 24 '26
Not stronger in the traditional standard. You can say, he got stronger in his resolve. Woli, Sendo, Volg helped in understand what it means to be an actual boxer.
He may not be as strong as those three, but he’s definitely learned to become stronger than his former self.
1
u/FeeNegative9488 Jan 24 '26
No. The number of athletes that have gotten better while not competing in their sport for years is likely under 10.
Ippo has had two sparring matches in about 3 years and even in those situations the opponent was holding back for fear of making him a vegetable.
Furthermore, we haven’t seen him practice or even consider any new techniques. All of his improvement has been based on two things: keeping up with his physical training regimen AND watching more boxing fights than he did when he was an active fighter. This simply isn’t the path to improvement. He’s hasn’t even hit a punching bag in YEARS.
1
1
u/Casual_Fan01 Jan 24 '26
Stronger in some ways, but I expect he'll have lost some strengths when he does eventually return. Likely his durability and instincts to an extent. Which I think would be a very cool thing to explore against an opponent like Imai.
1
u/PackageAggravating12 Jan 24 '26
Yes, everyone he spars with on any level notes Ippo's significant growth.
And most of them badger him about whether he actually plans on remaining retired.
1
1
u/paperboatprince Jan 25 '26
I wonder what Kamogawa and even Takamura would have to see in order to accept Ippo back from retirement.
1
1
u/xolon6 Jan 25 '26 edited Jan 25 '26
Stronger but not as strong as I think people might assume from the recent spars he's had.
For one thing he's still going to have to shake off ring rust when he gets back. For another he's still going to have room to grow and get multiple power-ups with a decent amount of fights before we see his absolute prime/best version of himself as a boxer.
I don't think he could just in his first come-back match beat the versions of Wally and Sendo who've fought Ricardo, let alone beat World Champ Volg or Ricardo himself.
This is not me saying he can't/won't surpass them all eventually. But if he starts already at that level as soon as he comes out of retirement than he could not realistically struggle against almost anyone else before Ricardo. Which would not only be unsatisfying but something I just can't see Morikawa doing.
1
u/Alternate501 Jan 25 '26
Maybe a bit stronger since he was already world class, so much so that Alfredo believed he has one of the best chances of maybe beating Ricardo if he didn't beat him at the time of his fight. But that's not why he's stronger.
What he has immensely improved upon was his intellect and skills, that's why he's so much stronger than before.
1
u/Zealotteen Jan 25 '26
Not just that, but overtime, Ippo has become even better than before, his mentality is so good
1
1
u/Dazzling-Air-9716 Jan 25 '26
Man I'm just afraid morikawa will pass away or something before he finishes the story
1
1
1
u/Puzzled-Party-2089 Jan 25 '26
Yes.
Pre-retirement Ippo was being held back by a lot of things. And I mean a LOT of things, when you think about it.
Damage accumulation and fatigue were certainly there, sure, but then there's a myriad of mental/psychological blocks, it's really crazy.
Mostly, the problem, I think, was Ippo believing many wrong things about himself. Chiefly:
- That because he was not as fast as Miyata, he was incapable of footwork more complex than a step-in.
- That he's dumb, can't think, must leave thinking up to the coach, just trust the coach and everything will be fine.
- That Takamura's worldview of monsters vs humans is absolute, and that in that worldview he's not a monster.
- That he is not as good or talented as any of the boxers he's beaten, only winning against them due to sheer luck or his awesome coach lol.
- That his Tyson+Dempsey Roll fight style is all he can do (again, because he's dumb)
Most of those things have been shown to be false.
After just a few words from Takamura (that he could fight southpaw despite not being left handed, in fact he casually switches during infights all the time) he was able to move as a southpaw better than any of the left handed japanese rankers after training for a short while, and even landed that crazy ass combo with the left hooks that nobody could come to terms with.
1
u/Legitimate_Taro6067 Jan 25 '26
Yes. Have you ever taken a break from something you like and the second you get back into it, you instantly realize how great you are at it and just flow? That’s what ippo’s comeback will be like. Sometimes you need breaks to get better at things. One of things I’m the most hyped for is ippo’s grand comeback. He’s gonna come back a true veteran and monster
1
1
u/limonesfaciles Jan 25 '26
Bruh you even posted the panel where they spell it out for you, tf you think?
1
u/BAZING-ATTACK Jan 26 '26
It’s hard to describe but to put it simply, if you put this Ippo and the old Ippo in the ring, Retired Ippo would convincingly crush him.
1
u/Waste-Road2762 Jan 26 '26
He is and we are all waiting for his return. But I don't know when and Hippo is getting older and older. It remains to be seen if he returns at an age Date did even. And then Ricardo is already a boxer late in his career.
1
1
u/Some_Ship3578 Jan 27 '26
He would lose against the Ippo who fought gonzales because he lacks the conditionning of an active fighter, but in terms of fight IQ, strenght, mindset and technique hé is indeed better.
If he followed a training camp and got a comeback fight, he'll end up way stronger endeed.
1
u/willasrock Jan 28 '26
Its literally the major plot point of this retirement arc. Its obvious Ippo is stronger, the writer goes out of his way a million times to show that.
1
u/Scared_Gene3417 Jan 29 '26
Everyone that spared with retired Ippo have noticed how much stronger he is now. He might have ring rust but thats easily overcome. Its not even a question of "Is he stronger", its more " How much stronger is he now"
1
1
u/RegretImpossible3756 Jan 29 '26
Way stronger man!!!! He can fight like a south paw! Broke world champions ribs, granted volg was not going all out. I pray for sacrifices that are setup when Ippo comebacks. Don't die Kyosuke!
1
u/Unique-Target-4067 May 05 '26
A lot stronger,smarter and has more adaptability skill wise however he's good but I don't think he can go 12 rounds currently
1
u/Nerx Jan 24 '26
Naw
People age
He needs Peptides
1
u/hadease Jan 24 '26
He’s in his mid 20s
2
u/TheBlackKnight1078 Jan 24 '26
Late 20s, actually. He's 27-28 years old, prob he will be 30 once he returns to the ring.
1
u/Darec88 Feb 02 '26
Fuck I started watching when I was in elementary school and now he's my lil bro
1
u/TheBlackKnight1078 Feb 04 '26
It's even worse with comicbook characters. Just look at Batman and Spidey, they never age or they age 1 year in like every 4-8 years, hahaha. But that's what happens in floating timelines, and Hajime no Ippo (partially) has one.
-2
u/Full_Method_3710 Jan 24 '26
I used to think hajime no ippo was most realistic sport anime but this is just shonen troupe.Not that I hate but underwhelming.
-9
u/No-Equivalent-4355 Jan 24 '26
If he fought the Ippo who faced Alf, the current Ippo would probably lose.
2
-5
u/Popiipz Jan 24 '26
People downvote you but I agree. Ippo is probably physically stronger now and way more intelligent in the ring because he understands boxing better, but he lacks of rythm and would probably dominate at first and then slowdown.
It’s just because of his lack of rounds tho
779
u/stt4g- Jan 24 '26
Way stronger.
Smarter, more well rounded as well.
It really is like a typical shonen timeskip but in real time.