The Naoya Inoue next fight news is likely still weeks away. However, it is always fun to speculate on who “The Monster” might face next.
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Who will Naoya Inoue next fight be against?
Having just scored a decisive sixth-round knockout of top contender Luis Nery, we are likely looking at a late-2024 return for Inoue. The reigning undisputed super bantamweight champion has fought twice a year since 2021. As for who that next title defense could be against, Sam Goodman is the name being floated around the most. Murodjon Akhmadaliev and John Riel Casimero are two other potential foes.
- Goodman: The 25-year-old from Australia has quickly climbed the charts since making his debut in 2018. He is a perfect 18-0 with a recent finish of Mark Schleibs and wins over Miguel Flores and Ra’eese Aleem on his resume.
- Akhmadaliev: A former unified super bantamweight champion, the 29-year-old won bronze at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He rebounded from a loss to Marlon Tapales by stopping Kevin Gonzalez last December.
- Casimero: The full-time YouTuber has held world championships in three weight classes. At 35 years old, his chances are dwindling but he has not lost since 2017 and is 33-4-1 overall.
Naoya Inoue vs. Luis Nery recap
For the first time in his career, Inoue was knocked down. Nery planted the champion to the canvas in the opening round of action in his native home of Japan.
But that seemed to only fuel Inoue. From there, he completely dominated the WBC mandatory challenger and former two-division titleholder. In the second round, he dropped Nery and did so again in the fifth.
By the time the sixth and what would be the final round came to be, Inoue scored a third knockdown and the fight was waved off by the referee. Outside of the early knockdown suffered himself, Inoue completely controlled the fight.
Inoue landed 107 punches to just 54 by Nery, with 62 of those being considered power punches during the bout.
A finishing champion: The win marked the 27th in the career of Inoue. Of those 27 pro fights, 24 have been finishes for him. That includes stoppage wins in each of his last eight fights, all of which have been title defenses.
Inoue last went to the scorecards in 2019 vs. Nonito Donaire.
Best of the best: Inoue is widely-regarded as one of the top boxers in the world. He ranks near the top of the charts on the pound-for-pound list. Among his many accolades, he is one of the just two male boxers to hold undisputed titles in two weight classes in the four-belt era. The other being Terence Crawford.
What makes Naoya Inoue so popular?
His willingness to stand and deliver the knockout blow. With those 23 finishes, Inoue is a finisher. Plus, ever since his decision to turn pro, he has always taken on the toughest challenges.
His first pro fight was against a Filipino national champion. From there, he battled a Thai national champion and Japan’s No. 1 ranked light flyweight at the time. In just his fourth pro bouts, he was competing for titles, winning the Japanese light flyweight belt.
- Naoya Inoue record: 27-0
- Naoya Inoue age: 31 years old
- In his pro debut, Inoue claimed a fourth round knockout of Crison Omayao. He followed with back-to-back finishes before going the full 10 rounds with Ryoichi Taguchi in 2013 for the title.
- Since winning the Japanese light flyweight belt, each of Inoue’s matches have been with a title on the line.
- He won his first major crown in 2014, claiming the WBC light flyweight belt with a finish of Adrian Hernandez. He won the WBO junior bantamweight title later that year.
- Along with wins over Nonito Donaire and Paul Butler, he has also topped Emmanuel Rodriguez, Juan Carlos Payano, Stephen Fulton and Marlon Tapales.
- The Ring, BWAA and ESPN named him Fighter of the Year in 2023.
- Married to his high school sweetheart, Inoue has three children.
- He is trained by his father, Shingo Inoue, a former amateur boxer. Brother Takuma Inoue and cousin Koki Inoue are both professional boxers as well.
Naoya Inoue net worth
Through the course of his career, Inoue has amassed a net worth of $7 million.
