i think ultimately you do really have to kill that part of your brain that vividly imagines how you would redo parts of your life.
Lords and Ladies - Terry Pratchett
My mom once told me she didn’t regret not going out and party more when she was younger because at the time she didn’t want to, so that was her decision at the time. I took it as, “I may not have made certain memories that may have been fun or good while I had the chance, but I don’t regret not making them because it’s not something I wanted at the time” and that really reshaped how I feel about regret and missed opportunities.
I do not wonder what my life would have been like if I had done this or that, because the decisions I’ve made up to now are the decisions I wanted (or needed) to make at the time. I’m not who I am because of my decisions, but I made my decisions because of who I am, and regretting the past is not going to change that <3
“Get off your high horse Martinez. The only reason you’re champion is because you’ve never fought me.” Welcome to another entry in The Guide to a Fighting Spirit, the series that breaks down everyone and everything in the world of Hajime No Ippo. Today, we will be exploring the history of one of the most ferocious fighters in the series. The Tiger of Naniwa himself: Takeshi Sendo.
Takeshi Sendo is a bad looking SOB from the Osaka Region currently fighting on the world stage. He first appeared as Ippo’s opponent in the All-Japan Rookie Tournament. Since then he has become a recurring character in the series. Sendo is defined by his tough guy nature and eagerness to fight, which might lead one to believe he is just some punk but there is a much deeper character than that. Sendo was the son of a FireFighter who gave his life to save a child. Proud of his father’s sacrifice, Sendo would vow to protect everyone, even building a gang to aid him in his a**kicking. Much like Takamura, Sendo was scouted by his boxing coach during a fight broke out on the streets between him and a few of his boxers, though unlike Takamura, Sendo actually attacked his coach, who was able to hold his own against him. Sendo then joined the gym simply to get a chance to fight against tougher opponents and would find his calling in the ring.
As you would expect, Sendo is a natural born fighter who is somewhere between a slugger and swarmer. Sendo relies primarily on his overwhelming strength which is said to be greater than even Ippo’s to win fights. So much so that he completely ignores defense in favor of all out attack. Normally this would be a problem in boxing but Sendo is such a relentless fighter that his lack of guard doesn’t matter. The fact that he never stops attacking is enough of a deterrence for the opposition to attempt fighting back. Despite his tendency to charge forward and fight head on however, Sendo’s ideal range is actually midrange. His signature punch is a Smash, a wide swinging uppercut thrown at a diagonal angle toward the chin. This is a devastating attack though he found out during a sparring match with Takamura that it had a big weakness: If it misses or does not KO an opponent, it leaves him wide open. However, rather than create a more defensive version of the punch, he instead opted to increase its power by bending over backwards and throwing the punch from his feet. Creating what has become known as his Low Altitude Super Smash. Given his status as a hybrid, Sendo is effective against most opponents. He’s strong enough to fight other sluggers and swarmers and his tendency to charge forward puts him at a natural advantage against out-fighters. Yeah he takes a lot of damage but he’s so tough that it doesn’t matter and his fight sense is so sharp that he’s often able to dodge punches on pure instinct. In fact, Sendo is another fighter with no real weaknesses, though by his own admission, he is weak against counters. Despite this claim however, he was able to fight Miyata to a draw in a sparring match.
Given Sendo’s strength, he completely dominated the Osaka Fighting Circuit and set his sights on an all out brawl with Ippo, who had a similar fighting style to his. The fight proved to be a tough one for Ippo and a fun one for Sendo, though it ended anticlimactically as Ippo knocked Sendo out only to have him keep fighting despite the unconsciousness, something Sendo’s second didn’t realize until the round ended and he sat down in his corner. When he didn’t stand back up to fight, that’s when the match was called in Ippo’s favor. Following his defeat, Sendo would continue to fight and would return for Ippo’s title match with Date with the intention of throwing down a challenge for a rematch following Ippo’s victory. A victory that did not come as Sendo witnessed Ippo’s first loss. He would then face off with Vorg for Date’s vacated title and though Sendo won, it was a hollow victory because by his count, he should have lost on points. Regardless of the circumstances, Sendo won the title and would defend the belt three times before losing it to Ippo again in their long awaited rematch.
After taking some time off for rehab, Sendo returned to the ring but rather than go after Ippo again, Sendo decided to focus more on building his world rank with the intention of fighting Richardo Martinz, the World FeatherWeight Champion. In order to prepare, Sendo has spent most of his time fighting Mexican boxers. Recently however, Sendo’s priorities changed when Ippo was handed his second defeat by Alfrado Gonzeles. Unable to stand the fact that there were two people out there stronger than he was, Sendo would go out of his way to set up a match with Gonzales. He would get his wish when Gonzeles witnessed Sendo sparring with Martinez, where he was able to force his top rival to his knees, something he was never able to do. Though Gozeles wrote this off as fluke, he agreed to fight Sendo when Martinez put up a title match with him as the prize. Though Gonzeles beat the living hell out of Sendo, the Tiger of Naniwa proved too much for him. It looks like Sendo is heading for a match with Martinez. Will he be able to beat him? Only time will tell.
Some more fun facts about Sendo.
Sendo is very similar to Joe from Ashita No Joe, a classic boxing manga that predates Hajime No Ippo. Similarities include appearance, personality, and friends.
Sendo is modeled after Donovan “Razor” Ruddock, the inventor of the Smash who famously had two hard fought matches with Iron Mike Tyson, who coincidently Ippo was modeled after.
Sendo has fought 24 matches total with a record of 22-2. His only losses being his two fights with Ippo. Sendo also has a KO rate of 95%. An outstanding record to say the least.
And that pretty much does it for Takeshi Sendo. Hope you enjoyed this little history lesson and that you will join me next week for another.
