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Pound for pound superstar Naoya Inoue set for May return in America
Japanese fighting icon Naoya Inoue is coming back to America.
The pound-for-pound king will defend his undisputed junior featherweight world title against San Antonio native Ramon Cardenas on Sunday, May 4, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Inoue has not fought in America since 2021 and has since won a pair of undisputed titles, cementing his status as a generational power-punching force.
“Naoya Inoue is among the most powerful and well-rounded fighters I’ve had the privilege of promoting, a singular boxing talent,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum.
“After many years selling out arenas and stadiums in his native Japan, ‘The Monster’ is ready to take over Las Vegas on Cinco de Mayo weekend. Ramon Cardenas is a worthy challenger who has earned this opportunity with several impressive victories.”
Inoue (29-0, 26 KOs) is 24-0 with 22 knockouts in world title fights, a staggering championship run that began with his April 2014 knockout of Adrian Hernandez to win the WBC light flyweight title. He continued his decade-plus run of dominance with seven defenses of the WBO junior bantamweight world title before a nine-fight run at bantamweight that concluded with his stoppage of Paul Butler to win the undisputed title.
Inoue toppled future Hall of Famer Nonito Donaire twice at bantamweight, including a second-round stoppage in June 2022. Inoue became the undisputed junior featherweight champion in just two fights, knocking out then-unified champions Stephen Fulton and Marlon Tapales in 2023.
Last May, he packed over 50,000 fans into the Tokyo Dome, rising from a first-round knockdown to stop former two-division king Luis Nery in six. Inoue has since made two more defenses of the undisputed crown, knocking out TJ Doheny in seven and late replacement Ye Joon Kim in four.
Inoue said, “I am thankful to the fans in America who have followed my career. Fighting at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas is another career highlight, and I look forward to putting on a great show for everyone in attendance. Cardenas is a tough opponent who I respect for accepting the fight without hesitation.”
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