tape story
Here's a look at how Inoue and Kim are rated ahead of tonight's main event. At Thursday's official weigh-in in Yokohama, both men comfortably made the super bantamweight division limit of 122 pounds. The champion will have an estimated 1-inch height advantage and an estimated 3.5-inch reach advantage.
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Inoue is bouncing punches off Kim’s head now. One after another. The challenger might not be around much longer. Kim is throwing punches with Inoue. A dangerous game. Inoue shakes Kim’s foundations with a concussive right hand. And down goes Kim! It was a left-right combination that dumped the challenger to the canvas, a right hand straight down the middle delivering the coup de grâce. He’s hunched over as the referee gives the 10-count. And he’s not going to make it! The referee counts Kim out and Inoue has won by fourth-round knockout!
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KIM ASKED FOR MORE AND INOUE MADE HIM PAY 😱
Be careful what you wish for. pic.twitter.com/lsdJPTGEY4
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) January 24, 2025
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Here’s a look at how Inoue and Kim measure up ahead of tonight’s main event. Both comfortably made the super bantamweight divisional limit of 122lbs at Thursday’s official weigh-in in Yokohama. The champion will bring in advantages of one inch in height and an estimated three and a half inches in reach.
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Hello and welcome to the undisputed junior featherweight championship fight between Naoya Inoue and Ye Joon Kim. The unbeaten four-weight Japanese champion known as the Monster is back in action today at the waterfront Ariake Arena today in the Tokyo suburbs in defense of his WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO title belts at 122lbs, the division where he’s managed to unify all four major belts after doing the same at 118lbs. That’s been enough in the assessment of many to make Inoue the world’s No 1 pound-for-pound fighter.
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Inoue’s original opponent, the Australian contender Sam Goodman, was forced to withdraw after suffering a cut during training, leaving Kim to step in on less than two weeks’ notice. While the abrupt change disrupted Inoue’s training schedule, the 31-year-old views it as an opportunity rather than a setback. “Adjusting my preparation has been a plus,” he said this week. “I think this will help me in future big fights.”
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And big fights are what Inoue specializes in. While he’s yet to bring the Monster Show stateside in his imperial era, he’s making eight figures every time he steps in the ring in Japan and has headlined a boxing card at the Tokyo Dome for the first time since Mike Tyson. His run of four-belt dominance began in December 2022 when he unified the bantamweight titles with a clinical stoppage of Paul Butler. Since then, he’s ascended to the super bantamweight division, claiming undisputed status with knockout wins over Stephen Fulton, Marlon Tapales, Luis Nery and most recently TJ Donehy. Now Inoue seeks his 10th consecutive KO victory – and a chance to add yet another highlight to his Hall of Fame resume.
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Every fight comes with risks, especially against a hungry underdog like Kim, who has been gifted the chance of a lifetime and vowed to bring the fight to Inoue from the opening bell. (“I’m different from anyone he’s faced before,” Kim declared. “It’s my time. I’ll crush him.”) Still, Kim faces an uphill battle against a generational talent like Inoue and will go off as an overwhelming underdog. Bob Arum, the 93-year-old promoter who co-promotes Inoue with Ohashi Promotions, has spent the week heaping effusive praise on the Japanese star. “Inoue is more disciplined and technically sound than Manny Pacquiao,” Arum said. “He doesn’t take foolish chances. He’s a complete fighter.”
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The final preliminary bout, a scheduled 12-round fight between Jin Sasaki and Shoki Sakai, is just finishing up. Then Inoue and Kim will make their ringwalks.
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Naoya Inoue poses during Thursday's official weigh-in.”,”caption”:”Japan's Naoya Inoue poses during Thursday's official weigh-in.”, “credit”:”Photo: Philip Fong/AFP/Getty Images”}}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”summary”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1737714826000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”05.33 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1737715787000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”: “05.49 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1737715787000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”05.49 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”05.49″,”title”:”Preamble”,”contributors”:[],”primaryDateLine”:”Friday 24 January 2025 06.51 EST”,”SecondaryDateLine”:”First published Friday 24 January 2025 05.30 EST”}],”filterKeyEvents”:false,”id”:”key-events-carousel-mobile”,”absoluteServerTimes”:false,”renderingTarget”:”Web”}”>
main events
“I'm very happy to meet so many people at the arena,” Inoue said through an interpreter. “My opponent has changed and it's been more than I expected. Sam Goodman has been injured twice and a new opponent came against me 10 days before the fight. But I feel a lot of love from everyone. Thank you so much. Thank you.”
He added: “I think it was a bit of a good match overall. I didn't have enough time to study my opponent, so I took my time and saw what would come out of him.”
Inoue KOs Kim in 4 rounds!
round 4
Inoue is now bouncing punches off Kim's head. One after another. There may not be a challenger for much longer. Kim is exchanging punches with Inoue. Dangerous game. Inoue shakes Kim's foundation with a concussed right hand. And Kim collapses! It landed the challenger on the canvas with a left-right combination and a right hand straight into the middle with great success. He crouched down as the referee gave him a count of 10. And he's not going to make it! The referee called Kim out and Inoue won by KO in the 4th round!
Kim asked for more and Inoue made him pay 😱
Be careful what you wish for. pic.twitter.com/lsdJPTGEY4
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) January 24, 2025
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round 3
Kim landed a good combination between Inoue's high guard to start the round, but the champion responded with a straight right. Right now, Inoue is putting together punches with surprising efficiency. Inoue-san's wonderful body work. Inoue's snappy, accurate shots as he outmaneuvers and outmaneuvers his Korean opponents. A mouse appeared under the challenger's left eye. Kim has so far given a commendable account of herself, but the class gulf between the two is clear.
Guardian's unofficial score: Inoue 10-9 Kim (Inoue 30-27 Kim)
round 2
Inoue lands a sharp right. He's found a good rhythm and is starting to let go and throw with power and accuracy. Kim showed a lot of respect for Inoue, who stepped into the pocket, threw punches, and increased his workload. Kim is timing the champion, waiting for a free left hand. And he was able to land it in about a minute. Inoue felt it, but he took it well. Inoue then catches the challenger with a compact right hand near the end of the round.
Guardian unofficial score: Inoue 10-9 Kim (Inoue 20-18 Kim)
round 1
There's a bell there. Kim comes out with an orthodox stance. Both players exchange feints as the tension rises. Kim switches to southpaw, which has bothered Inoue a bit in the past (as much as Inoue has bothered him). There wasn't much action for the first three minutes as the fighters collated data and respected each other.
Guardian's unofficial score: Inoue 10-9 Kim (Inoue 10-9 Kim)
The combatants have been announced. Interestingly, Kim is nominated for second place, which is traditionally the champion's honor. The referee gives the final instructions and the second is over, and from here on we will take it up in a round-by-round manner!
It's time for fighters to enter Ariake Arena. The first person to emerge from the tunnel is challenger Kim Ye-joong, wearing a plain black robe and black trunks, walking the long way to the ring. Akon's beautiful day A blast from the arena sound system. The 15-1 underdog looks incredibly relaxed in the moments before the fight of his life.
And finally, the monster appears! He is lifted toward the rafters by a hydraulic lift as a laser show lights up the arena. Finally he is lowered and makes his way to the ring wearing a white robe with red trim. After a pause, he climbs the stairs, slips through the ropes, and raises a single glove to the crowd.
This Inoue walkout. Unrealistic.
👑 @NaoyaInoue_410 |Live On @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/B3HgL35nop
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) January 24, 2025
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Ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. begins proceedings by calling for the national anthems of South Korea and then Japan.
Top Rank's Carl Moretti said Kim has gained 25 pounds since yesterday's weigh-in. That means he'll be stepping into the ring at 147 pounds, a full-fledged welterweight. Inoue reportedly hydrated up to 135 pounds.
In a side-by-side match, Hitoshi Sasaki defeated Shōki Sakai by unanimous decision in 12 rounds. He then called out to all the current welterweight champions from his cell phone in English.
“My name is Hitoshi Sasaki, and I will be the first Japanese welterweight world champion!'' Sasaki says. “I believe we will definitely win, so let's fight together, all welterweight world champions!'' Boots Ennis, Eimantas Stanionis, Brian Norman, Mario Barrios, I will not run or hide, this year's Looking forward to the world title match! thank you! “
Hitoshi Sasaki defeats Shōki Sakai in an absolute slugfest 👏 pic.twitter.com/HLnFf4J5RP
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) January 24, 2025
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tape story
Here's a look at how Inoue and Kim rate ahead of tonight's main event. At Thursday's official weigh-in in Yokohama, both men comfortably made the super bantamweight division limit of 122 pounds. The champion will have an estimated 1 inch advantage in height and 3.5 inches advantage in reach.
preamble
Hello. Welcome to the undisputed junior featherweight championship fight between Naoya Inoue and Ye Jun Kim. The undefeated Japanese four-division champion known as Monster defended his 122-pound title belt today at the Ariake Arena on the waterfront in the suburbs of Tokyo, having successfully unified the WBA, WBC, IBF, and WBO title belts. He returned to the game. He won four major belts after doing the same at 118 pounds. In the opinion of many, that's enough to make Inoue the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
Inoue's original opponent, Australian favorite Sam Goodman, was injured during practice and was forced to withdraw, leaving Kim to take his place less than two weeks later. The sudden change disrupted Inoue's training schedule, but the 31-year-old sees it as an opportunity rather than a setback. “Adjusting my preparation has been a positive,” he said this week. “I think this will help us in big matches in the future.”
And big fights are Inoue's specialty. Although he has yet to hold a monster show on American soil during the imperial era, he has racked up eight figures every time he steps into the ring in Japan since Mike Tyson, who headlined the first boxing card at Tokyo Dome. His run of four belt exclusivity began in December 2022, when he unified the bantamweight titles with a clinical suspension of Paul Butler. Since then, he has moved up to super bantamweight and established himself as an undisputed fighter with knockout wins over Stephen Fulton, Marlon Tapares, Luis Nery, and most recently TJ Donehy. Inoue is currently aiming for his 10th consecutive knockout victory and a chance to add another highlight to his Hall of Fame resume.
Every match involves risk. Given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, especially against a hungry underdog like Kim, he vowed to give Inoue a fight from the opening bell. (“I’m different than anyone I’ve ever played against,” Kim declared. “It’s my turn now. I’m going to crush him.”) Still, Kim faces an uphill battle against a generational talent like Inoue. He will face them and fight as the overwhelming loser. Bob Arum, the 93-year-old promoter who co-promotes Inoue with Ohashi Promotions, has spent the past week raving about the Japanese star. “Inoue is more disciplined and technically sound than Manny Pacquiao,” Arum said. “He doesn't take stupid risks. He's a total fighter.”
The final qualifying match, the 12th round match between Hitoshi Sasaki and Shōki Sakai, has just ended. Inoue and Kim then do a ring walk.
Brian will be here soon. In the meantime, let's take a look back at Thursday's official weigh-in.
