The unified super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) weighed in at 121.8 lbs, while his replacement Challenger Ye Joon Kim (21-2-2, 13 KOs) came in at 121.7 pounds for his headliner this Friday January 24. at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.
(Credit: Naoka Fakuda)
Somber Weigh-in
The weigh-in had a funereal feel, as no one was smiling, with the fighters with gloomy expressions on their faces. Inoue had been scheduled to defend against Sam Goodman, but suffered an injury on the field and had to be replaced by Kim.
For fans outside of Australia, Kim and Goodman are interchangeable. No difference. Both are light punchers and no threat to beat Inoue, and they are not popular fighters. It is good that a replacement opponent could be found so quickly. It’s too bad a better opponent could have been dug up to make it interesting.
Who is Kim?
Not much is known about Kim because he has struggled with lesser opposition throughout his 13-year professional career. He did nothing to rate himself for a title shot, even as a replacement opponent.
It’s strange how Team Inoue chose him rather than someone the fans have heard of, and that could give Naoya a run for his money. That might not be what they would have wanted because it would have been risky for Inoue to fight someone with two weeks of preparation for his style.
Friday’s Inoue-Kim event will be shown on ESPN+ at 4:15 a.m. ET/1:15 a.m. PT. Boxing fans in the US will probably get up that early to watch the event, but here it is.
Inoue, 31 years old, has not had anyone that boxing fans have been excited to see since his match against Stephen Fulton in 2023. This fight has made many people in the United States eager to see. Since then, Naoya has defeated these fighters:
– TJ Doheny
– Luis Nery
– Marlon Tapales
