Naoya Inoue building towards ‘the biggest fight in the history of Japan’ with Junto Nakatani in 2025
Watch Naoya Inoue defend the undisputed super-bantamweight world title against Sam Goodman on January 24 live on Sky Sports; Top Rank’s Bob Arum maps out Inoue’s plans for 2025, culminating in a Japanese super-fight against Junto Nakatani
Naoya Inoue is building towards “the biggest fight in the history of Japan” in 2025.
Inoue is one of the most impressive stars in world boxing. He has already become an undisputed world champion in two weight classes.
Having unified all four of the major world titles at bantamweight, over the course of 2023 and 2024 he amassed all the belts at super-bantamweight.
Last year he beat both Luis Nery and TJ Doheny, halting both men and continuing a knockout run that has extended since he defeated Nonito Donaire for the first time in 2019.
His next defence, against Australia’s Sam Goodman, was postponed when the challenger, also unbeaten, picked up a cut over his eye in sparring.
Inoue will now box Goodman on January 24 at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, live on Sky Sports.
If Inoue is victorious, US promoters Top Rank intend to bring him back to America to fight another unbeaten fighter, Alan David Picasso, likely in April.
“The December 24 [fight against Goodman] is now going to be held on January 24 so that’s done, written in stone,” Top Rank’s Bob Arum told Sky Sports.
“And then after that fight we expect to bring Inoue to the United States to fight in Las Vegas against this Mexican fighter named Picasso. Which we’re going to have a lot of fun with. He’s a good fighter, Picasso.”
Junto Nakatani, the brilliant Japanese WBC bantamweight champion, is rising as a threat to Inoue. He will defend his title next on February 24 against Mexico’s David Cuellar.
Arum wants to bring Nakatani to America to box on the same card as Inoue, with a view to matching them against each other later in the year.
The promoter said: “Then we’ll also have on that card the bantamweight champion, Nakatani. A tremendous fighter and if Inoue and Nakatani win their fights, which will probably be in April, then they would fight each other for the 122lbs title in Japan at the Tokyo Dome, which would be the biggest fight in the history of Japan.”
