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Superstar Naoya Inoue to Fight Luis Nery at Tokyo Dome on May 6

Undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue headlines the first pro boxing event at Tokyo Dome since 1990. Three more title fights are on the card.

Published

2 months ago

March 6, 2024

Ed Odeven

Naoya Inoue and Luis Nery stand in front of a promotional poster for their May 6 super bantamweight title fight during a Tokyo news conference on March 6. (KYODO)

Read the full story on SportsLook - Superstar Naoya Inoue to Fight Luis Nery at Tokyo Dome on May 6

Naoya Inoue will be the marquee attraction in a boxing title fight quadruple header on Monday, May 6 at Tokyo Dome, it was announced on Wednesday, March 6.

Appearing in the 22nd world title fight of his illustrious career, undisputed super bantamweight champion "Monster" Inoue (26-0, 23 knockouts) will meet Mexico's Luis Nery (35-1, 27 KOs).

The fight card will also feature Takuma Inoue (19-1, five KOs), Naoya's younger brother, who is the WBA bantamweight champion. His opponent: Sho Ishida (34-3, 17 KOs).

Naoya Inoue previously conquered the bantamweight division, becoming the undisputed champion with an 11th-round stoppage of Paul Butler on December 13, 2022. He vacated the division and repeated the feat in the super bantamweight division by earning a 10th-round KO of Marlon Tapales on December 26, 2023.

Also fighting on this busy boxing Monday with a bantamweight title on the line will be Australian WBO champion Jason Moloney (27-2, 19 KOs), who faces former kickboxer Yoshiki Takei (8-0, eight KOs). Takei was the K-1 super bantamweight champion before switching to boxing and turning pro in 2021.

Meanwhile, WBA flyweight champion Seigo Yuri Akui (19-2, 11 KOs) is getting ready for his title defense on the same night against compatriot Taku Kuwahara (13-1, eight KOs).

Capitalizing on the Popularity of Naoya Inoue

After the elder Inoue's last fight was held in December at Ariake Arena, with a capacity for 15,000, there was talk of staging his next fight at Tokyo Dome. The baseball stadium can accommodate more than 50,000 spectators as a fight venue.

The last time Tokyo Dome was the site for a major world title fight was February 11, 1990, when 42-1 underdog James "Buster" Douglas shocked the world by beating Mike Tyson, the undisputed heavyweight champion via a 10th-round knockout.

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Author: Ed Odeven

Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.