NAOYA INOUE may not battle on Christmas Eve in any case.
Sam Goodman, the Australian contender who was scheduled to problem Inoue for the Japanese celebrity’s IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO 122-pound titles December 24 in Tokyo, suffered a minimize throughout a sparring session Friday that pressured him to withdraw from their 12-round title battle that evening. Goodman was minimize simply above his left eyelid throughout what was slated to be his final sparring session earlier than he flew from Australia to Japan on Sunday.
Australian broadcast journalist Ben Damon first reported the information of Goodman’s minimize on social media Friday evening.
Boxing Information has confirmed that Goodman’s handlers have pushed for your complete occasion to be postponed to January 24 to accommodate the No. 1 contender within the junior featherweight rankings of each the IBF and WBO.
Inoue’s representatives have thought-about changing Goodman (19-0, 8 KOs) with Japan’s Toshiki Shimomachi (19-1-3, 12 KOs), who’s scheduled to sq. off in opposition to one other Japanese boxer, Misaki Hirano (11-1, 4 KOs), in a 10-rounder on the undercard December 24.
Simomachi is ranked No. 5 by the IBF, No. 8 by the WBC and No. 11 by the WBA within the 122-pound division. The WBO lists Simomachi as its No. 7 contender within the featherweight division (126 kilos).
Ariake Area is offered out for the cardboard that was speculated to function Inoue-Goodman, which was a big consider Inoue’s handlers not desirous to postpone the occasion.
Presumably extra problematic, nevertheless, is that Shimomachi is a 5-foot-10½ southpaw, whereas Goodman is 5-foot-6½ and fights from a right-handed stance. Switching methods for a southpaw, with out the advantage of a lot, if any, sparring in opposition to left-handed boxers, this late in coaching camp apparently inspired Inoue’s handlers to easily have him battle Goodman a month later.
A one-month postponement would possibly disrupt Inoue’s plans for 2025, although.
Inoue meant to return to the ring April 12 in Las Vegas if he overcame Goodman on December 24. His possible opponent for that bout would’ve been Mexican contender Alan Picasso (30-0-1, 16 KOs), who should first defeat Colombia’s Yehison Cuello (13-2-1, 11 KOs) on Saturday evening in Tijuana to stay the WBC’s No. 1 challenger for considered one of Inoue’s 4 championships. If Inoue have been to reach back-to-back mandated defenses in opposition to Goodman and Picasso, he needs to battle WBC bantamweight champ Junto Nakatani (29-0, 22 KOs) at Tokyo Dome in what can be the most important battle in Japanese boxing historical past both late subsequent summer time or early subsequent fall. Nakatani would wish to win one other bout, maybe in his 122-pound debut, to safe his spot in a showdown with Inoue as effectively.
