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Japan's Naoya Inoue has been wreaking havoc in boxing's lower weight classes for the last decade.
The Zama-born fighter is a three-weight world champion, having won belts in the light flyweight (108lbs) and super flyweight (115lbs) divisions. He now reigns as the WBA and IBF Bantamweight (118lbs) Champion and will look to add the WBC Championship to his collection when he takes on Nonito Donaire in their highly anticipated rematch on June 7th.
Inoue is a come-forward fighter who stalks his opponents and annihilates them with brutal body blows. Dubbed 'The Monster', he is a boxer with ferocious punching power. Possessing an undefeated record of 22-0, the Japanese sensation has won 19 of those stellar victories by way of knockout.
At only 29 years old, Inoue still has the time and talent to further enhance and solidify a powerful legacy. While it's common in the West for weight classes underneath featherweight (126lbs) to receive little praise, 'The Monster' has proven that he can't be ignored. Should his streak of dominance continue, Inoue's name may be cemented next to the likes of Ricardo 'Finito' López and Éder Jofre.
Naoya Inoue comes from a country with a rich and long boxing lineage
Japan has been producing champions since 1952 when Yoshio Shirai defeated Dado Marino to not only become the flyweight titleholder, but also the first Japanese boxer to claim a world title.
During the '60s and '70s, Japanese boxing entered a golden age. Multiple world champions emerged around this time, including "Fighting" Harada. Like Naoya Inoue, Harada was a titleholder in the lower weight classes and cemented his legacy by becoming a flyweight and bantamweight champion.
Shortly after Harada's retirement in 1970, Japan was graced with even more amazing fighters. The wildly unorthodox Guts Ishimatsu became the country's first lightweight champion in 1974; the swift Kuniaki Shibata was a champion at both featherweight and super featherweight. Koichi Wajima, nicknamed 'Man on Fire', was the undisputed light middleweight (154lbs) champion from 1971-1974.
'The Monster' is not the first boxing champion to come out of Japan nor will he be the last. Excluding Inoue, there are six Japanese world champions competing professionally, with the likes of Kenichi Ogawa (super featherweight), Kazuto Ioka (super flyweight), and Junto Nakatani (flyweight) currently holding gold.
With such rich lore and a boxing scene that always seems to be thriving, it's highly unlikely that 'The Land of the Rising Sun' will ever lose its love for the sweet science.
What's next for Naoya Inoue?
Naoya Inoue is the current WBA and IBF Bantamweight Champion. He will look to unify his titles when he takes on WBC Champion Nonito 'The Filipino Flash' Donaire on June 7th at the Saitama Super Arena.
The two clashed in the bantamweight finals of the World Boxing Super Series in November 2019. In a bout that was voted Fight of the Year by Ring Magazine, Inoue and Donaire engaged in an absolute barnburner. 'The Filipino Flash' turned back the clock and delivered one of his grittiest performances, giving 'The Monster' his toughest fight to date.
The back-and-forth battle saw Inoue score a dramatic knockdown in the 11th round with one of his signature body blows. Donaire, ever the warrior, rose to his feet and finished the fight. After 12 thrilling rounds, a bloodied Inoue was awarded a unanimous decision.
Both men have been on dominant streaks since their epic 2019 clash. Donaire went on to score back-to-back knockouts against two undefeated opponents and win the WBC Championship in the process. Inoue is currently riding a three-fight win streak, with his last few opponents not coming close to giving him the tough fight that Donaire did.
Should the Japanese star emerge victorious in the June 7th rematch, that would put him one step closer to becoming the undisputed bantamweight champion. All that would remain would be the WBO Championship, a title currently held by Paul Butler.
If 'The Monster' is able to defeat all other credible challenges at 118lbs, with Butler and John Riel Casimero being the main ones that come to mind, then from there the only place to look is up. The super bantamweight (122) division is currently ruled by two undefeated champions: Uzbek Murodjon Akhmadaliev and American Stephen Fulton.
Both champions could offer Inoue an immense challenge. Akhmadaliev is an Olympic bronze medalist who captured world titles in only his eighth professional fight. Against Fulton, Naoya Inoue would be presented with a fighter who not only has the reach advantage, but also enjoys attacking the body.
Boxing fans will surely be interested to see how Naoya Inoue's career unfolds. Should he clear out the bantamweight division and then go on to win titles in his fourth weight class, the world will have no choice but to further acknowledge the greatness of 'The Monster'.
