Naoya Inoue, the Japanese superstar who shook the boxing world after dominating the undefeated American boxer Stephen Fulton during their match in Tokyo, Japan. Inoue won the bout due to stoppage and has become the new Super Bantamweight WBC and WBO world champion. With that, he gives Fulton his first-ever defeat in his boxing career. With such impressive performance and overall career, where does Naoya Inoue currently rank in today’s list of best pound-for-pound boxers?
Naoya Inoue only needed 8 rounds to take down the bigger and taller Stephen Fulton
For seven rounds, Inoue has been demolishing Fulton left and right. The Japanese boxing star has been hitting the American with body shots continuously. It was a steady fight and is fairly one-sided until Inoue drops the axe by hitting Fulton with a clean right hook, followed by a left hand to complete the setup.
NAOYA INOUE KNOCKS DOWN STEPHEN FULTON THEN WINS BY TKO 😳 https://t.co/wyzuBySjYY
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) July 25, 2023
Although Fulton was able to stand up and recover, “The Monster” sent a barrage of punches resulting in a stoppage. Inoue would win by Technical Knockout and becomes a four-division champion. Truly, a mesmerizing and amazing performance by Naoya Inoue. Throughout the match, it was obvious that Inoue was set to win against Fulton. He landed more shots and obviously had more points in the judges’ table.
On the other hand, one of the best, if not the best boxer in the world Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao praised Naoya Inoue’s performance. According to the former eight-division champion, “Inoue has great speed and lots of power behind his punches. He’s a special fighter!”. Pacquiao himself is also an Asian who made his way to the harsh sport of professional boxing. The Filipino boxing legend is in the Boxing Bible’s top 10 boxers of all time and will stay that way for many years.
Inoue has great speed and lots of power behind his punches. He’s a special fighter! #InoueFulton
— Manny Pacquiao (@MannyPacquiao) July 25, 2023
As of right now, Naoya Inoue is the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world
At 30 years old, Inoue has already held titles in four different weight classes: light flyweight (108 lbs), super flyweight (115 lbs), bantamweight (118 lbs), and his new belt from Fulton, the super bantamweight (122 lbs). The 30-year-old fighter boasts an undefeated 25-0 record, 22 of which came from knockouts. At this rate, he is currently named as the best pound-for-pound boxer according to ESPN. Many analysts also believe he is already the top fighter in the world, regardless of weight class.
However, this honor could be stripped by whoever wins in the upcoming Terence Crawford vs Errol Spence bout this Saturday in Las Vegas. Crawford has been the No.1 for quite some time and he will be going up against another great fighter, Errol Spence, who is currently ranked No.5. Crawford, in comparison to Inoue, has achieved a similar feat by winning titles in three divisions: lightweight (135 lbs), super lightweight (140 lbs), and welterweight (147 lbs). But, as of this moment, Inoue is first and Crawford is second according to every ranking by boxing experts.
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