Do you still read ‘The Bible?’ As in, ‘The Bible of Boxing,’ Ring Magazine? If so, you will know who has been crowned The 2023 Fighter of the Year – Naoya Inoue. And why not? The Japanese superstar fought just twice last year (which is the norm these days, with some elite fighters/stars fighting just once a year), and “The Monster” sure made both victories count.
The first Japanese fighter to win Ring Magazine’s Fighter of the Year award, 30 year old Inoue unified two 122 pound belts in July, this when he crushed Stephen Fulton in eight hugely impressive sessions. While Inoue then stopped an even gamer Marlon Tapales to add the other two super-bantamweight belts to his ever-growing collection on New Year’s Eve.
With no need of a tune-up at the new weight, with zero need to engage in any silly pre-fight demands, Inoue did what the greats of yesteryear did: he got on with the job and he fought the best. And Inoue wiped out the competition as he invaded his fourth weight division. In short, as special as Terence Crawford looked in his sole appearance of 2023 – with “Bud” dominating Errol Spence in a fight that earned him the ‘Performance of the Year’ gong in the opinion of many – Inoue wiped out the opposition as far as the Fighter of the Year argument is concerned.
Inoue is, as the latest phrase goes, generational talent. “The Monster” is truly special. Inoue looks to be just about unbeatable…..untouchable.
But what might 2024 have in store for Inoue? Domination at a fifth weight? Further spectacular displays at 122 pounds? Maybe Inoue will have more than two fights this year?
We must all enjoy and appreciate Inoue while he’s here. He won’t be here forever, as hard as that might be to comprehend when watching him go to masterful work in destroying the best opposition out there for him. Inoue barely loses rounds, let alone an actual fight. Currently 26-0(23), Inoue might just go on to be one of the rare greats who manages to exit the sport with a perfect, unbeaten record.
Can YOU see anyone beating Inoue? Ever?