Undisputed super-bantamweight champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue’s fight against Sam Goodman on December 24 will have to be postponed after the Aussie suffered a cut over his left eye during his last sparring session . The two were due to meet at the Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, in Tokyo, Japan.
No replacement?
No word yet on whether Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) will find a replacement opponent to save the date and card. Not that there was much interest from non-Australian fans to see Inoue defend against Goodman, 26, as the fight was seen as a mischance.
Fans wouldn’t complain if Inoue never rescheduled the Goodman fight because that’s not one of the names on people’s wish lists to face the Japanese fighter.
They want Inoue to start fighting 50-50 fights, not 90-10. This is why Naoya is not popular outside of his native Japan. He never puts himself in a position where he could lose by fighting guys who have a chance to beat him. It is not a risk.
Goodman had never beaten notable opponents to acquire his #1 ranking with the IBF and WBO. Boxing fans would like to see Inoue take on a talented candidate for a change, namely Murodjon Akhmadaliev or John Riel Casimero. Goodman was just another in a long line of disappointing opponents Inoue faced during his 12-year professional career.
Inoue took his time moving up to 126 to face the dangerous talents in that division, and some think he has stage fright, knowing that he has to fight these dangerous apex predators:
Rafael Espinoza
Bruce Carrington
King Vargas
Stephen Fulton
Angel Leo
Brandon Figueroa
Sulaimaan Segawa
Is it asking too much for Inoue to fight one of these killers? Many of these guys would be an absolute nightmare for the 31-year-old Inoue, which may be why he is hesitant to move up to featherweight.
Goodman’s injury
disaster Sam Goodman was cut over the eye in his final shot before the undisputed fight with Naoya Inoue. Goodman’s camp is now pushing for a delay to the fight scheduled for Christmas Eve in Tokyo. Goodman was getting ready to fly tomorrow #InoueGoodman pic.twitter.com/cdq6UpIMI8
— Ben Damon (@ben_damon) December 14, 2024
