Naoya Inoue’s fight against Murodjon Akhmadaliev is official for September 14th at the IG Arena in Nagoya, Japan. It was announced today. Inoue (30-0, 27 KOs) defends his undisputed super bantamweight championship against what many believe is his toughest career test against Akhmadaliev (14-1, 11 KOs).
Inoue vs. Akhmadaliev Fight Set
Some of the interest that was once there has been taken out of the match-up after Akhmadaliev lost in 2023 to Marlon Tapales. It’s still a compelling fight, but not quite what it was if Naoya had agreed to fight him earlier.
Akhmadaliev and his promoter have been pressuring Inoue to make this fight for a long time. Finally, they’ve cornered him, and the match is happening. It’s going to be interesting to see how Naoya handles the heavy shots from Akhmadaliev, because this guy can punch, and he’s a lot better than the fighters that Inoue has beaten in recent years.
The timing of the fight is perfect for Akhmadaliev, as he’s catching Inoue, 32, just when he’s starting to show signs of slippage after 13 years in the pros. He was dropped in his last fight by Ramon Cardenas, which was supposed to be another one of Inoue’s cherry picks in the Bum of the Month Club journey he’s been on.
Akhmadaliev’s Power vs. Inoue
Unlike Inoue’s last opponent, Akhmadaliev possesses power in both hands and has far superior technical skills that could make him a nightmare for ‘The Monster’ Inoue. If the Japanese star loses this fight, his plans for a domestic scrap against Junto Nakatani will be delayed. He would have to try to avenge his loss against Akhmadaliev.
The Uzbek-born Akhmadaliev has won his last three fights since being upset by Marlon Tapales by a 12-round split decision in 2023 in a clash that could have easily gone the other way. The judges weren’t giving Akhmadaliev any breaks with the way they scored the fight.