Undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue’s fight against Sam Goodman on December 24 will have to be postponed after the Australian suffered a cut over his left eye during his final sparring session. The two were scheduled to meet at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.
No replacement?
No word yet on whether Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) will find a replacement to save the date and card. It wasn’t that there was much interest from non-Australian fans to see Inoue defend against Goodman, 26, as the fight was considered a mismatch.
Fans wouldn’t complain if Inoue never rescheduled the Goodman fight because that’s not one of the names on the wish list for the Japanese fighter to face.
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 fighting guys who have a chance to beat him. He is not a risk taker.
Goodman had never defeated an opponent of note to earn his #1 ranking with the IBF and WBO. Boxing fans wanted to see Inoue take on a talented replacement candidate, namely Murodjon Akhmadaliev or John Riel Casimero. Goodman was another of the frustrating opponents Inoue faced during his 12-year professional career.
Inoue takes his time at 126 to take on the dangerous talent in this division, and some believe he’s stage-frightened, knowing he’d have to fight these dangerous top predators:
Rafael Espinoza
Bruce Carrington
King Vargas
Steven Fulton
Angelo Leo
Brandon Figueroa
Sulaimaan Segawa
Is it asking too much for Inoue to fight one of these assassins? Many of these guys would be an absolute nightmare for Inoue, 31, which is why he may be hesitant to move up to featherweight.
Goodman’s injury
Destruction. Sam Goodman has been cut above the eye in his final fight before the undisputed fight with Naoya Inoue. Goodman’s camp is now pushing for a delay to the planned Christmas Eve fight in Tokyo. Goodman was due to fly out tomorrow #InoueGoodman pic.twitter.com/cdq6UpIMI8
— Ben Damon (@ben_damon) December 14, 2024
