Undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue will defend his four belts against #1 IBF/WBO contender Sam Goodman (19-0, 8 KOs) on December 24th, Christmas Eve, at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan. Inoue-Goodman will be the headliner of this career, shown in the U.S. on ESPN+. The time of the event will be announced later.
Inoue Looking for Another Knockout
The 31-year-old Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) is staying busy, making good money in the weak 122-lb division, staying much longer in this weight class than fans outside of Japan would want him to.
They want to see him face A-level opposition at featherweight, but he’s resisting that move, and you can’t blame him. Super bantamweight is paradise for him because there are zero threats to reign. The one fighter fans in the U.S. who want to see Inoue face is WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis. The Japanese star Inoue has shown no interest in fighting Tank Davis, though they’re both the same height.
Inoue has won four-division world titles, but the only notable name on his resume is Nonito Donaire, who was 36 and no longer in his prime when they fought. The lack of names on Inoue’s resume is why fans want him to be in the deep featherweight division, where 11 fighters could give him a lot of problems. Some of them would be a pure nightmare for Inoue.
Goodman is a finesse-level fighter in the Paul Butler mold. He can’t punch and wins his fights by outboxing his opponents. Inoue does very well against those types of fighters and can bomb them with shots without worry about getting clipped or suffering facial damage, as he did in his first fight against Donaire.
The Australian Goodman’s Recent Wins
– TJ Doheny
– Chainoi Worawut
– Mark Schleibs
– Miguel Flores
– Ra’eese Aleem
If the super bantamweight division were better, Goodman wouldn’t be getting a title shot because he would have been weeded out. It’s all the better for Inoue to feast on this level of opposition rather than face someone who could potentially beat him, like what would be the case if he moved up to 126.
WBO bantamweight champion Yoshiki Takei (10-0, 8 KOs) will face a still-to-be-determined challenger in the chief support bout.
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