The super bantamweight bout between Naoya Inoue and Sam Goodman, scheduled for December 24, has been postponed.
The highly anticipated fight between Naoya Inoue (28-0, 25 knockouts) and Australian challenger Sam Goodman (19-0, 8 knockouts) has been postponed to January 24. The fight was originally scheduled for December 24. However, after Goodman suffered a cut over his left eye during sparring, the date had to be changed. The fight for all major limit titles will take place at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Inoue has established himself in two weight classes with dominant wins over Paul Butler, Stephen Fulton and Marlon Tapales. He last made history in May when he survived a knockdown in the Tokyo Dome to knock out Luis Nery in the sixth round.
The unbeaten Goodman impressed with four victories in 2023. These included victories over former champion TJ Doheny and the talented Ra’eese Aleem and Zhong Liu. Goodman will be looking to prove himself as the new star of the super bantamweight division against Inoue. In addition to the main event, Yoshiki Takei (10-0, 8 knockouts) will defend his WBO bantamweight title against Thailand’s Yuttapong Tongdee (15-0, 9 knockouts).
Text by Robin Josten
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