Naoya Inoue: Who Can Realistically Challenge ‘The Monster’?
Naoya Inoue returns to the ring next week for the latest defense of his undisputed super-bantamweight titles – and is once again expected to dominate his opponent.
The 31-year-old (27-0-0 24 KO) faces Irish challenger TJ Doheny (26-4-0 20 KO) on Tuesday – an unusually usual fight day for the Japanese star – in Tokyo, where his WBA, WBC, WBO, and IBF world titles will be on the line.
‘The Monster’ is such a massive favorite that if he were to suffer a surprise defeat, it would go down as one of the greatest shocks in boxing history.
This wide mismatch is mainly down to the brilliance of Inoue. Doheny is a solid fighter riding a three-fight win streak. Three of his losses have come against good-quality opposition, including then-world champion Daniel Roman, contender Michael Conlan, and top-ranked challenger Sam Goodman. Doheny has never been stopped in his career.
Despite his respectable record, Doheny is being given close to no chance against Inoue. The Japanese pound-for-pound star has dominated all before him, carving his way through four weight classes and the best fighters each division has to offer.
Unstoppable Inoue
A fighter who collected his first world titles at light-flyweight, Inoue proceeded to pick up belts at flyweight and bantamweight, where he became a four-belt undisputed champion. He repeated the feat last year at super-bantamweight, becoming only the second male fighter after Terence Crawford to become undisputed in two divisions during the four-belt era (Oleksandr Usyk has since joined the club).
Each time he entered a new division, the same questions were raised regarding whether his freakish power would carry over to the heavier weight – and each time he silenced those doubts with a string of spectacular knockouts. If anything, Inoue has become more powerful and more clinical at 122lbs – as Stephen Fulton and Luis Nery can both attest.
Fulton was the unbeaten unified super-bantamweight world champion when Inoue made his debut in the division against the American in July 2023. Eight rounds later, Fulton had been demolished and Inoue left the ring in Tokyo with the WBC and WBO titles.
Nery, who had been Japanese boxing’s public enemy No 1 for past controversies when fighting in the country, was a live underdog in May, and even had the temerity to drop Inoue in the first round. Almost offended that the Mexican dared send him to the canvas for the first time in his career, Inoue responded by breaking down Nery for the following five rounds.
Inoue To Featherweight?
It’s become quite evident that, for a fourth successive division, there are no fighters capable of challenging The Monster. Mandatory challenger Goodman is likely to get his chance by the end of the year, but if it goes the way many expect, Inoue will need to start looking at other options.
Could Inoue add another four pounds and be just as devastating at featherweight? He’s looked so dominant at super-bantam that there’s little evidence to suggest the additional weight would have any negative impact.
Should he make the move into a fifth weight class, attractive fights against featherweight champions would await. Angelo Leo, who delivered a Knockout of the Year contender to beat Luis Alberto Lopez earlier this month to take the IBF belt, has already called out Inoue. WBO champion Rafael Espinoza and WBC title holder Rey Vargas would both be interested, while the promoter of WBA champion Nick Ball – Frank Warren – has said Inoue could be “an option”.
Other high-profile fighters in the division like Josh Warrington, Raymond Ford, and Brandon Figueroa would also represent exciting possibilities for Inoue.
As fun as it’s been to tune in on a Tuesday to marvel at Inoue decimate another opponent, there will come a time soon when fight fans will want to see him properly challenged. The most obvious step, therefore, is to make the move to featherweight in 2025.
Could Nakatani Or Bam Climb?
There is another option that would no doubt thrill fight fans if it were to happen, and it would mean Inoue staying at 122lbs. Like Inoue, there are two special fighters in the lighter divisions that could continue to climb weight classes. Fellow Japanese pound-for-pound star Junto Nakatani is arguably the finest bantamweight on the planet and holds the WBC title.
Similar to Inoue, Nakatani possesses enormous power for a smaller fighter and has used it to become a three-weight world champion. An all-Japanese showdown between the two would be one of the biggest fights of any year.
One division and three pounds lighter lurks another pound-for-pound fighter in Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez. The American became a two-weight world champion this year by taking the WBC super-flyweight belt from Juan Francisco Estrada. A fight between Inoue and Bam would be another mega-bout to capture the attention of global fight fans.
So, while there appear to be few viable options at super-bantamweight presently, Inoue has several possibilities, whether that’s by climbing to another division or enticing Nakatani or Bam to 122.
