Mercado is a 30-1 fighter who has never fought outside Mexico. His loss came by SD in a 4 rounder in his 2nd pro fight. He hasn't fought elite competition. Best win was against Arthur Villanueva, who had previously only lost to guys like McJoy Arroyo, Zolani Tete, Nordine Oubaali, and Elijah Pierce. So he's a solid guy but you'd expect him to have a few more name opponents before you considered him for an Inoue fight.
The current rumor has Inoue fighting #1 Akhmadaliev and then #5 Cardenas, so that's great news if that's the way he goes. Those are the top two guys at 122 that he hasn't already beaten besides #3 Goodman, who pulled out of the fight three times.
The current rumor has Inoue fighting #1 Akhmadaliev and then #5 Cardenas, so that's great news if that's the way he goes. Those are the top two guys at 122 that he hasn't already beaten besides #3 Goodman, who pulled out of the fight three times.
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