Inoue's Father Pushes Retirement After Nakatani Win

Naoya Inoue's father and trainer believes his son has nothing left to prove and should walk away from boxing.

Shingo Inoue told Yahoo! Japan News that the undisputed bantamweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">super bantamweight champion ought to retire following his May 2 stoppage of Junto Nakatani at Tokyo Dome. "How many more fights does he need to have? It's about time he retire already," Shingo said, per the outlet. "He can walk away cleanly while he's still a legend and at his best."

What's Next for the Pound-for-Pound King

The elder Inoue acknowledged he has not discussed retirement directly with his son, who improved to 33-0 with 27 knockouts and ascended to the top spot in The Ring's pound-for-pound rankings after the Nakatani victory. That fight generated a reported $32 million gate, fourth-highest in boxing history behind only Mayweather-Pacquiao, Mayweather-McGregor, and Canelo-Crawford.

Retirement appears far from Naoya's mind. The Ring reported that preliminary talks are underway between Inoue's camp and Jesse Rodriguez for a potential January showdown in Japan. Rodriguez, ranked No. 4 pound-for-pound by The Ring, holds undisputed status at 115 pounds and faces Antonio Vargas at bantamweight on June 13.

Inoue is 33 years old and has also floated the possibility of moving up to featherweight. Any decision on retirement will likely wait until after those options play out.

Source: ringmagazine.com