Naoya Inoue vs. Jesse 'Bam' Rodriguez - 2027?

[Ruthless-RKO]

Naoya Inoue vs. Bam Rodriguez in preliminary talks, says Hearn

The biggest fight of Naoya Inoue's career arrives May 2, when he defends his undisputed 122-pound title against Japanese countryman Junto Nakatani at Tokyo Dome on DAZN.

Another significant, arguably bigger fight for The Ring’s No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter is already being discussed.
Inoue and unified Ring, WBA, WBC and WBO 115-pound champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez are in preliminary talks, Matchroom Boxing CEO Eddie Hearn revealed at a post-fight press conference after Ben Whittaker’s first-round knockout of Brian Suarez on Saturday.

However, he said that fight probably won’t be next for Rodriguez, whom he promotes. Rodriguez, The Ring’s No. 4-ranked fighter pound for pound, is scheduled to face Antonio Vargas on June 13.

“There have been some early preliminary discussions with His Excellency [Turki Alalshikh] about Inoue against Bam,” Hearn said. “I do think that fight is inevitable. I don’t think it’s going to be necessarily straight after the Vargas fight, but it could be as quick as in the next two or three fights.

“It’s probably one of the biggest fights in boxing. It’s one that Bam likes the idea of.”

Rodriguez is moving up to bantamweight to face Vargas, the WBA’s champion in recess, for the sanctioning body's full championship at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

Vargas (19-1-1, 11 KOs) is The Ring’s No. 5-ranked fighter at 118 pounds.

Seiya Tsutsumi, currently the full WBA bantamweight beltholder, was supposed to defend his title against Vargas on April 11. However, the Japanese fighter had to withdraw, having failed to recover in time due to a facial fracture suffered during his unanimous decision win over Nonito Donaire on Dec. 17.

Vargas was originally elevated from interim titleholder to world champion last year, when Tsutsumi was unable to face him with another facial injury.

Meanwhile, after fighting to a majority draw against Daigo Higa last July 30, Vargas was later relegated to champion in recess after a family tragedy prevented him from defending the title against Tsutsumi late last year.

Rodriguez, a two-division champion, added the WBA 115-pound title to his collection of belts with a dominant 10th-round knockout of Fernando Martinez on Nov. 22.

The dynamic southpaw from San Antonio also hasn’t ruled out moving back down to that weight to become the undisputed champion. That would require him to face the winner of IBF champion Willibaldo Garcia (23-6-2, 13 KOs) vs. Andrew Moloney (28-4, 18 KOs), which takes place on June 6 in Japan.

Of course, scheduling fights far in advance is a risky proposition. Inoue-Nakatani survived only after the latter escaped with a unanimous decision over Sebastian Hernandez in a fight that could have been scored either way.

But if Inoue vs. Rodriguez does come to fruition, the blend of skill and power between the two unquestionably makes it one of the best fights in boxing.

[gilgamesh]

Inoue shouldn't be in talks about anything after Nakatani. Nakatani should be where his world Begins and Ends until that fight is over. He's not one to look past.

[Ruthless-RKO]

They’re just assuming he gets past Nakatani?

I guess is Nakatani slays the Monster then he can fight Bam.

[Sendo Takeshi]

Nakatani is obviously a very dangerous opponent. But to be fair, even though a lot of people agree he could be Inoues biggest test, nobody is actually putting their money on him.

With odds between -400 and -500, Inoue is a massive favorite as usual. That's like a ~80% win probability.

I personally gave Nakatani a 25-30% chance to win, and thought that was pretty generous.

[gregregegg]

I agree inoue should be focused. And hopfuly he is.

But I do hope his team is having preliminary talks… cause otherwise by may bam coyld have another fight booked for November and then they would be all out of whack…. This way bans team can wait till may to see if the mega fight is possible.

Bam vs inoue superb. Hopfuly september…

[Ruthless-RKO]

'Bam' Rodriguez would fight Inoue after Vargas, if option is offered

Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez won’t make his bantamweight debut until June 13, when he’ll square off against Antonio Vargas in a 118-pound championship match.

The undefeated, unified junior bantamweight champ still wouldn’t hesitate to challenge undisputed junior featherweight champ Naoya Inoue in his next fight.

Inoue has to beat Japanese rival Junto Nakatani in their 122-pound showdown Saturday night at Tokyo Dome. Rodriguez told Rick Reeno, The Ring’s CEO, that he feels facing Inoue would determine the best pound-for-pound boxer in the sport during the newest episode of the “Mr. Verzace Podcast,” available on The Ring’s YouTube channel.

“If that fight was presented to me right now,” Rodriguez said, “I’d definitely go ahead and take it.”

Rodriguez, a 26-year-old San Antonio native, would gladly travel to Inoue’s home country to fight him because The Ring, WBA, WBC and WBO 115-pound champ considers it one of the defining fights in the history of the lower weight classes.

“I really don’t care where it is,” Rodriguez said. “I love going to Japan anyway, so if I were to go to fight out there for the first time that would be great. … If it’s in the United States, that’s great as well, just because there’s a lot of Mexican American fans that would support as well. Wherever the fight ends up being, I don’t care, as long as the fight happens.

Rodriguez (23-0, 16 KOs) is focused for now on facing Vargas (19-1-1, 11 KOs) for the 2016 U.S. Olympian’s WBA bantamweight title. DAZN will stream their bout as the main event of a Matchroom Boxing card at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

The former IBF/WBO flyweight champ looks forward to watching two elite-level stars squaring off next weekend in another main event DAZN will stream globally from Tokyo.

Inoue (32-0, 27 KOs) is ranked No. 2 on The Ring’s pound-for-pound list, two spots atop Rodriguez and four spots ahead of Nakatani (32-0, 24 KOs). DraftKings lists Inoue as a 4-1 favorite to win their fascinating fight for his Ring, IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO belts.

“I think it’s a great fight,” Rodriguez said. “I think whoever lands the first big punch definitely is gonna put the other to sleep. But it’s gonna be hard. That’s a great fight. They’re both pound-for-pound greats. They’re both world champions. So, I think this is the kind of fight that like whoever lands first is going to win.”

Rodriguez favors Inoue, but he doesn’t discount Nakatani’s chances because he struggled on his way to beating aggressive, rugged Mexican underdog Sebastian Hernandez (20-1, 18 KOs) unanimously on points on “The Ring V: Night of the Samurai” card December 27.

“Before those fights, I was favoring Inoue to win the fight,” Rodriguez said in reference to Nakatani’s win and Inoue’s easier points victory over Alan Picasso in the main event. “And then, those fights didn’t change anything [to me]. Styles make fights. The guy Nakatani fought was non-stop pressure. I don’t think Inoue has that same kind of style. Styles make fights.”

[Ruthless-RKO]

[Ruthless-RKO]

TURKI ALALSHIKH PLANNING JANUARY DATE TO STAGE INOUE-BAM IN JAPAN

A super fight between Naoya Inoue and Bam Rodriguez is being planned by Turki Alalshikh for January in Japan, The Ring has learned.

The bout, if a deal is completed, would feature The Ring’s No. 2 pound-for-pound boxer, “The Monster” Inoue, against Bam, who is No. 4. Inoue, 33, would defend his Ring Magazine championship at 122 pounds.

Rodriguez, The Ring’s champion at 115 pounds, will debut at 118 in a June 13 title challenge of Antonio Vargas in Glendale, Arizona.

Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs) is coming off Saturday’s unanimous-decision victory over Junto Nakatani at the Tokyo Dome in the biggest fight in Japanese history.

Rodriguez (23-0, 16 KOs) has never competed in Japan, but has twice traveled to the country to support his brother, Joshua Franco, for his fights from the corner.

“If that fight was presented to me now, I’d definitely go and take it,” Rodriguez, 26, said on a recent episode of the Mr. Verzace Podcast. “I think me against Inoue would definitely be one of the biggest fights in the lower weight divisions.

“ … I love going to Japan anyways so if I were to fight out there for the first time, that would be great.”

Alalshikh plans to stage the event with the biggest fan capacity possible as he seeks a stadium to break the Japanese attendance record.

A special edition Ring Magazine belt will be designed for the super fight to commemorate the event.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Plans are reportedly underway to hold a 'Riyadh Season Japan' event headlined by Naoya Inoue vs Jesse 'Bam' Rodriguez at the IG Arena in Nagoya in February 2027

Riyadh Season are reportedly guaranteeing around ¥5billion ($31.8m) in purse money

(Yahoo Japan)

[joshj909]

If Inoue beats Bam, where would that leave him all time p4p? I think he would have to be in the conversation of being right near the top. If he was to then go on and pick up all the belts in the weightclass above him or go on to beat someone like Shakur he'd be in serious contention for number 1.

[Ruthless-RKO]

[Sendo Takeshi]

If Inoue beats Bam, where would that leave him all time p4p? I think he would have to be in the conversation of being right near the top. If he was to then go on and pick up all the belts in the weightclass above him or go on to beat someone like Shakur he'd be in serious contention for number 1.

To be honest, I don't think Bam would be a better win for Inoue than Nakatani.

If Bam moves up to Super Bantam after fighting only once at Bantam, I don't think many people would give him much of a chance. Inoue wouldn’t respect his power and would just unload on him.

However, if Inoue actually cleans out the Featherweight division (including 185 cm Espinoza) that would be a much bigger achievement for his legacy. A 20 cm height difference with a guy who punches like a truck sounds incredibly unfair, though...

[joshj909]

If Inoue beats Bam, where would that leave him all time p4p? I think he would have to be in the conversation of being right near the top. If he was to then go on and pick up all the belts in the weightclass above him or go on to beat someone like Shakur he'd be in serious contention for number 1.

To be honest, I don't think Bam would be a better win for Inoue than Nakatani.

If Bam moves up to Super Bantam after fighting only once at Bantam, I don't think many people would give him much of a chance. Inoue wouldn’t respect his power and would just unload on him.

However, if Inoue actually cleans out the Featherweight division (including 185 cm Espinoza) that would be a much bigger achievement for his legacy. A 20 cm height difference with a guy who punches like a truck sounds incredibly unfair, though...

It's not about being a better scalp but having more strength in depth. Beating two unified champs is better than beating one. There are many boxers out there that have beat greats but are not great themselves. If you can beat multiple great boxers, it cements a boxer as truly great.

[Sendo Takeshi]

If Inoue beats Bam, where would that leave him all time p4p? I think he would have to be in the conversation of being right near the top. If he was to then go on and pick up all the belts in the weightclass above him or go on to beat someone like Shakur he'd be in serious contention for number 1.

To be honest, I don't think Bam would be a better win for Inoue than Nakatani.

If Bam moves up to Super Bantam after fighting only once at Bantam, I don't think many people would give him much of a chance. Inoue wouldn’t respect his power and would just unload on him.

However, if Inoue actually cleans out the Featherweight division (including 185 cm Espinoza) that would be a much bigger achievement for his legacy. A 20 cm height difference with a guy who punches like a truck sounds incredibly unfair, though...

It's not about being a better scalp but having more strength in depth. Beating two unified champs is better than beating one. There are many boxers out there that have beat greats but are not great themselves. If you can beat multiple great boxers, it cements a boxer as truly great.

It's definitely gonna look good on his record, I don't argue that.
I'm just saying Nakatani is the bigger win and unified/undisputed titels at featherweight would be bigger as well.

[Bobbyptsd]

I don't like Inoue's chances against Espinoza at this point, I think he'd lose that. I think at 33 he's lost half a step and Espinoza is the real deal in my view. I think Inoue's an atg, maybe the greatest sub 126 fighter of all time, but I think Espinoza is a bridge too far. I did pick Inoue to beat Rodriguez though in the poll.

[Ruthless-RKO]

INOUE READY TO BATTLE 'BAM' RODRIGUEZ: 'IT IS ALL ABOUT THE TIMING'

Naoya Inoue took care of business and outlasted game challenger Junto Nakatani to retain his undisputed junior featherweight title Saturday in Japan.

"There was pressure not to lose. It was a tense fight, so I'm relieved to have won,” Inoue said during his post-fight press conference. "My boxing career isn't at the end. We just finished the fight, so I think I'm going to have great history in the future. I hope I can make history, more and more."

Whether or not Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs) has reached his ceiling at junior featherweight remains to be seen. His last nine fights over three years have taken place at 122 pounds, and the last three have resulted in unanimous decisions.

Inoue has teased a featherweight run for the last couple of years but never fully committed to the move despite cleaning out the competition at 122.

But Jesse Rodriguez might be the last big bite that presents considerable danger to Inoue, whenever he decides to move up.

Rodriguez (23-0, 16 KOs) is set to make his 118-pound debut next month against Antonio Vargas in Glendale, Arizona. Rodriguez holds The Ring, WBA, WBC and WBO titles at 115.

Turki Alalshikh made his intentions clear Saturday after Inoue beat Nakatani that he’s interested in staging a fight between “Bam” and “The Monster” as early as January in Japan.

“Of course , but it is all about the timing,” Inoue told The Ring’s Mike Coppinger from his dressing room at Tokyo Dome after beating Nakatani.

Rodriguez is also game for a career-defining fight that has been years in the making.

“If that fight was presented to me now, I’d definitely go and take it,” Rodriguez told The Ring CEO Rick Reeno last month on the Mr. Verzace Podcast.

“I think me against Inoue would definitely be one of the biggest fights in the lower weight divisions … I love going to Japan anyways, so if I were to fight out there for the first time, that would be great.”

[gilgamesh]

Don't they always try to do a Big Boxing card on December 30th and 31st in Japan? This bout seems like a natural for something like that.

[Ruthless-RKO]

‘Legend slayer’ Rodriguez all in on facing Naoya Inoue

Jesse Rodriguez officially goes by the nickname “Bam,” but another moniker The Ring’s No. 4 pound-for-pound fighter has earned recently is the “Legend Slayer.”

Rodriguez (23-0, 16 KOs) earned the billing by blasting Juan Francisco Estrada, Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, Sunny Edwards and Carlos Cuadras from 2022-24, which marked his official entry as a perennial top player in the sport.

Rodriguez is a former unified 112-pound titleholder and now is The Ring, WBA, WBC and WBO 115-pound champion, getting ready to make his 118-pound debut against Antonio Vargas on June 13 in Arizona.

The bout is designed to fast-track Rodriguez’s eventual move to 122 pounds to face the undisputed junior featherweight champion Naoya Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs), who is fresh off a convincing unanimous decision victory over Junto Nakatani on Saturday in Japan.

“Bam is already known as the ‘Legend Slayer,’ and it doesn’t get any better than Inoue,” Rodriguez’s career-long coach and manager, Robert Garcia, told The Ring. “I think the timing is perfect timing, if they end up fighting early next year. By then, we’ll have a lot of answers at 118, and we’ll have Bam back in the ring, hopefully by October, against another top bantamweight.

"We would love for it to be against WBC champion Takuma Inoue. It would be a perfect fight to build up the fight against Naoya. If the brother doesn’t want the fight, we’ll take on WBO champion Christian Medina. These will be great tests to see where we are at when it comes to moving to 122. We’ll know much more after the Vargas fight, but definitely we want the fight against Naoya Inoue, 100 percent.”

Garcia added that Rodriguez’s days as a 115-pounder are “more than likely over, especially if we continue to look at the Inoue fight” and that they’d be comfortable jumping straight to 122 pounds for Naoya Inoue without taking a test at junior featherweight.

“I don’t see a big difference in size since Jesse and Naoya. Both came up from the lower weight classes,” said Garcia. “Naoya is more developed and has more experience as a 122-pounder, and Jesse still hasn’t fought at 118. But Jesse has the skills to compete against the best in the world, and he wants to fight Inoue.”

Garcia also reflected on Inoue’s win against Nakatani and explained how they’d approach the encounter.

“I expected Inoue-Nakatani to be a war, and it turned out to be a more tactical and technical fight,” said Garcia. “I thought Nakatani would bring more pressure from the first round, but he waited longer than expected and eventually made it more difficult for himself by starting too late.

“Fighting someone like Inoue is not easy. You have to be smart and careful with the chances you take, because there is plenty of power coming back at you. We would have to fight smart against Inoue, too. Bam is not a big-time brawler like Junto, but he stays busy and active and throws a lot of punches, and we have to take advantage of that.

“Inoue is still very fast and powerful, but I think Jesse has the skills, smarts and accuracy as the technical fighter to pull it off. We definitely have all of the skills to beat Inoue.”

After besting Nakatani, Inoue, now The Ring’s No. 1 P4P fighter, said, “Of course , but it is all about the timing.”

Turki Alalshikh expressed interest in staging the fight between Inoue, 33, and Rodriguez, 26, as early as January in Japan.
Rodriguez is all in on the super fight, as well.

“If that fight was presented to me now, I’d definitely go and take it,” Rodriguez said two weeks ago on the Mr. Verzace Podcast.

“I think me against Inoue would definitely be one of the biggest fights in the lower weight divisions. … I love going to Japan anyways, so if I were to fight out there for the first time, that would be great.”

[Sendo Takeshi]

Inoues dad wants him to retire already:
https://www.ringmagazine.com/news/inoue ... k1etcatS5M

Might be a good idea, considering how fast the <60 kg fighters age.
He can still fight Bam (and maybe one featherweight bout) though
But I don't want him to aim for undisputed anymore. He would have to pick them up individualy anyway, because they are all waiting for the payday..

[gilgamesh]

The KO's starting to dry up is definitely an indication that a guy is beginning to slip. Inoue can probably still get a few more marquee wins though, but they're all gonna start being much tougher i think.

I haven't watched as much of Bam to have a feel of how good he is or isn't as much as I do with Inoue, but I think there's a good chance he's going to be every bit as much of a problem as any Featherweight that Inoue could challenge. If not more of one. Gotta see how he looks as a Bantamweight, but honestly the guy coming up in weight usually has an edge over the guy that's been there a while and has possibly begun to outgrow it from a physical standpoint. So if the skills are on par with Inoue's it may be more than Inoue can handle at this point.

I'll definitely be watching more of Bam though to get a better idea of how I think this bout may go.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Inoue’s Father/Trainer Wants Him To Consider Retirement

Naoya Inoue’s father, Shingo Inoue, doesn’t believe in overstaying your welcome.

After guiding his son to the biggest win of his career on May 2 against Junto Nakatani at Tokyo Dome, Naoya not only climbed to the No. 1 spot in The Ring’s pound-for-pound rankings but also defended his undisputed 122-pound throne.

Additionally, their fight was a huge financial success. With a reported gate of $32 million, it cracked the top four in boxing history. Only Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao, Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor and Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford raked in more ticket revenue.

Considering all that his son has achieved, Shingo would prefer to see him walk away while he's on top of the boxing world. Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs) is 33.

“How many more fights does he need to have? It’s about time he retire already,” Shingo said to Yahoo! Japan News. “He can walk away cleanly while he’s still a legend and at his best. I haven’t talked to him directly about it, but honestly, how many more fights does he need? It’s enough already. He can retire suddenly while still a legend and while he’s still great.”

Retirement, however, isn’t in the immediate plans. Inoue has discussed the possibility of moving up to featherweight.
Before he makes that decision, however, he's having discussions to take on another pound-for-pound star in Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.

As reported by The Ring, preliminary talks are being held between the camps with a target date of January in Japan.
Rodriguez, ranked No. 4 pound-for-pound by The Ring, owns The Ring, WBA, WBC and WBO 115-pound titles. The San Antonio native will move up to 118 pounds to fight WBA bantamweight titlist Antonio Vargas on June 13 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

[Sendo Takeshi]

The KO's starting to dry up is definitely an indication that a guy is beginning to slip. Inoue can probably still get a few more marquee wins though, but they're all gonna start being much tougher i think.

To be fair, against MJ the plan was never really to pursue the knockout. Picasso was too scared to exchange punches (and if a high level fighter decides to take the safe route, it’s incredibly hard to knock them out (like in the Paul Butler fight)).

And Nakatani is Nakatani. Even though it felt like Inoue didn't actively pursue the knockout, he still clearly hurt him later in the fight.

I haven't watched as much of Bam to have a feel of how good he is or isn't as much as I do with Inoue, but I think there's a good chance he's going to be every bit as much of a problem as any Featherweight that Inoue could challenge. If not more of one. Gotta see how he looks as a Bantamweight, but honestly the guy coming up in weight usually has an edge over the guy that's been there a while and has possibly begun to outgrow it from a physical standpoint. So if the skills are on par with Inoue's it may be more than Inoue can handle at this point.

I'll definitely be watching more of Bam though to get a better idea of how I think this bout may go.

In my opinion, it's usually the opposite. You typically need a few fights to get used to a new weight class. Bam is moving up for his next fight, and if he is gonna face Inoue after that, he’d have to move up again.
He would have every disadvantage.

[gilgamesh]

Look at the recent past. Haney moves up and has a career best performance vs Brian Norman.

Crawford moves up and gets his biggest win vs Canelo.

Shakur Stevenson moves up and dominates Teofimo Lopez.

Benavidez moves up and dominates Zurdo.

An Elite fighter moving up in weight is often stronger because of it.

[Sendo Takeshi]

That's probaly just because they are just way more skilled than the guy they are fighting...
Superior talent beats a few extra kg of natural weight every time.

[gilgamesh]

That's probaly just because they are just way more skilled than the guy they are fighting...
Superior talent beats a few extra kg of natural weight every time.

And maybe Bam has superior talent.