Posted on 03/21/2023
By: Sean Crose
A bit of bad news:
Former undisputed bantamweight titlist Naoya Inoue has had to step away from his fight against WBC and WBO super bantamweight titlist Stephen Fulton on May 7th due to an injury received in training. According to ESPN, the plan is to reschedule the bout so that it will be able to go down in Japan this coming summer. The injury is said to be less than severe, which is certainly good news not only for Inoue, but for Fulton and fight fans in general.
An Inoue-Fulton fight is a major affair in that it pits two of the best boxers in the sport against one another for major world titles. Inoue is moving up in weight in order to lift Fulton’s 122 lb titles. That may be quite a challenge, however. Fulton is slick, extremely talented, and naturally bigger than Inoue. Yet Inoue, known as “The Monster” is as skilled himself as he is hard hitting. Here is a match that is truly difficult to call. This fight is relevant for a reason.
Inoue, by the way, was declared Boxing Insider’s 2022 Fighter of the Year. Yet it’s doubtful that Fulton, who goes by the nickname “Cool Boy Steph,” would be intimidated by that fact.