Yoshiki Takei retained the WBO Bantamweight title with a close and hotly contested 12-round unanimous decision over Daigo Higa.
Takei, 117 3/4 lbs of Yokoyama, JAP won by scores of 115–112 twice and 114-113 and is now 10-0. Higa, 117 3/4 lbs of Tokyo is 21-3-1.
TOKYO (July 16, 2024) — Pound-for-pound icon Naoya “The Monster” Inoue will defend his undisputed super bantamweight world championship against Irish-born former world champion TJ Doheny on Tuesday, Sept. 3 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. Inoue, a two-weight undisputed king, has knocked out eight consecutive foes.
Inoue-Doheny headlines a star-studded card streaming live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+. This special early morning broadcast will also include WBO bantamweight world champion Yoshiki Takei (9-0, 8 KOs) defending his belt against former flyweight world champion Daigo Higa (21-2-1, 19 KOs).
Venezuelan puncher Ismael Barroso (25-4-2, 23 KOs) will defend his interim junior welterweight world title versus rising Japanese contender Andy Hiraoka (23-0, 18 KOs) in undercard action.
“Naoya Inoue is a generational talent, and every time he fights, the boxing world stops to watch the master at work,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum. “TJ Doheny is a veteran who can never be counted out, as he’s defied the odds many times when fighting in Japan.”
Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs) claimed his first world title more than 10 years ago and is 22-0 with 20 knockouts in world championship fights. Inoue’s undisputed legacy began in December 2022 when he knocked out Paul Butler to unify all the bantamweight titles. He then consolidated the super bantamweight division in short order, capturing the WBC and WBO world titles by stopping Stephen Fulton in eight in July 2023 before vanquishing WBA/IBF champion Marlon Tapales that December. The 31-year-old powerhouse, named 2023 Fighter of the Year by ESPN and Ring Magazine, returned to headline at the historic Tokyo Dome in May. In the first boxing card there since Buster Douglas shocked Mike Tyson in 1990, Inoue survived a first-round knockdown to KO Mexican two-division champ Luis Nery in six.
Doheny (26-4, 20 KOs) has a rich history in Japan and against Japanese fighters. He is 3-0 against Japanese fighters and 4-0 on Japanese soil, with three victories as the betting underdog. Doheny dethroned IBF junior featherweight world champion Ryosuke Iwasa on enemy territory in August 2018. He defended the belt against Japanese challenger Ryohei Takahashi via 11th-round TKO the following January before losing the strap to Danny Roman in a close unification fight that April. Despite some setbacks, Doheny has rebounded with three consecutive wins on Japanese turf. He defeated Kazuki Nakajima via fourth-round TKO in June 2023, blasted out Japhethlee Llamido by first-round stoppage last October, and triumphed over Bryl Bayogos in four rounds on the Inoue-Nery undercard.
TOKYO (May 6, 2024) —It had been more than 34 years since the Tokyo Dome hosted a boxing event. Naoya “Monster” Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs), boxing’s pound-for-pound king, made it worth the wait. Inoue scored a sixth-round TKO over Mexican former two-division world champion Luis Nery (35-2, 27 KOs) in front a packed house Monday evening to defend his undisputed junior featherweight championship.
This marked the 22nd world title victory for Inoue, who recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of winning his first world title.
“Inoue is among the greatest fighters I’ve promoted, and he was sensational once again. Nery came to win, but ‘The Monster’ was too much,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum.
Inoue was floored early by a counter left hand in the opening stanza as he closed in on Nery. The 31-year-old returned the favor in the following round by sending Nery to the canvas with a counter left hook. Inoue then began breaking Nery down during the ensuing rounds before dropping him again with a left hook in the fifth. In the sixth, the pound-four-pound great landed consecutive right hands to end the fight at 1:22.
Inoue said, “I appreciate Nery. That’s why I shook hands with him after the fight. The knockdown motivated me. I am thankful to have fought against a great fighter in Nery.
“I don’t remember anything my dad {head trainer Shingo Inoue} told me in the intermission, but that happening gave me motivation. I was so focused until the end of the fight.
“Thank you so much to everyone for witnessing my fight. There are over 40,000 people here in the Tokyo Dome. I promise that I will keep giving you fights that get you excited.”
Takei Dethrones Moloney
Japanese former kickboxing world champion Yoshiki Takei earned boxing hardware in just his ninth pro fight, using his length and tricky southpaw style to topple WBO Bantamweight World Champion Jason Moloney (27-3. 19 KOs) via unanimous decision.
Takei (9-0, 8 KOs) prevailed by scores of 116-111 2x and 117-110. Moloney had Takei badly hurt and out on his feet in the final round, but the Japanese upstart survived the late charge to notch the well-earned decision.
Bantamweight: Takuma Inoue (20-1, 5 KOs) UD 12 Sho Ishida (34-4, 17 KOs). Scores: 118-109 2x and 116-111. Inoue, Naoya’s younger brother, made the first successful defense of his WBA Bantamweight World Title.
Flyweight: Seigo Yuri Akui (20-2-1, 11 KOs) UD 12 Taku Kuwahara (13-2, 8 KOs). Scores: 118-110 and 117-111 2x. Akui retains the WBA Flyweight World Title.
TOKYO (May 3, 2024) — Australian WBO bantamweight world champion Jason “Mayhem” Moloney may have to change his nickname to “The Road Warrior.” Moloney (27-2, 19 KOs) will defend his strap against Japanese former kickboxing world champion Yoshiki Takei (8-0, 8 KOs) on Monday, May 6 at the world-famous Tokyo Dome.
Moloney-Takei will serve as the co-feature to the super fight between undisputed junior featherweight king Naoya Inoue and Mexican puncher Luis “Pantera” Nery. Inoue-Nery, Moloney-Takei and two additional world title fights will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+ starting at 4 a.m. ET/ 1 a.m. PT.
Since losing to Inoue in October 2020, Moloney has won six straight bouts, a run that began with a convincing decision over Joshua Greer Jr. in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He then turned away Francisco Pedroza in Costa Mesa, California, before returning home to Australia and dominating Aston Palicte and Navapon Khaikanha. Moloney punched his passport again, outboxing Vincent Astrolabio last May in Stockton, California, to win the WBO bantamweight world title. He made his inaugural world title defense in January in Quebec City, Canada, edging American bruiser Saul Sanchez by majority decision in a Fight of The Year contender.
Moloney now moves his traveling roadshow to Tokyo against a unique southpaw riddle in Takei. Days away from his Japanese debut, this is what he had to say.
“I’m excited to be here and to be able to fight, especially on this, the biggest event in Japanese boxing history at the Tokyo Dome. This is a very exciting opportunity and one that I’ve trained extremely hard for to make it a very successful and memorable night in my life. And I’m very excited to be here, but I’m here for one job and that’s to defend my title and win this fight.”
“I’m expecting a hard fight, but I’ve put in the hard work to make sure I’m victorious.”
“His distance is different coming from a kickboxing background, so we prepared very hard for his unique style. He’s had eight fights and eight knockouts, and this is a big step up for him. It’s obvious his team has a lot of belief in his ability.”
“I need to put on a great performance, win this fight, and then I’m ready to unify with any of the other bantamweight champions. I want the big fights, and I have to beat Takei to make them happen.”
TOKYO (March 5, 2024) — Japan’s pound-for-pound hero is set to headline the biggest boxing event his country has ever seen. Undisputed junior featherweight world champion Naoya “The Monster” Inoue will defend all the belts against Mexican puncher Luis “Pantera” Nery on Monday, May 6 at the Tokyo Dome.
Inoue, a four-weight world champion and two-weight undisputed king, will headline at the iconic venue for the first time.
Inoue-Nery and three additional world title showdowns will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+ at 4 a.m. ET/1 a.m. PT. Australia’s WBO bantamweight world champion, Jason “Mayhem” Moloney will defend his belt against rising knockout artist and former kickboxing world champion Yoshiki Takei.
The world title quadruple-header also features WBA bantamweight world champion Takuma Inoue (19-1, 5 KOs), younger brother of Naoya, who defends his title against former world title challenger Sho Ishida (34-3, 17 KOs). And, in a flyweight world title tilt, newly minted WBA world champion Seigo Yuri Akui (19-2-1, 11 KOs) battles Taku Kuwahara (13-1, 8 KOs) in a rematch of their 2021 Japanese title bout, which Akui won by 10th-round TKO.
“Naoya Inoue is the world’s best fighter, a young man who amazes me every time he steps in the ring. Luis Nery is a tough challenger, but I fully expect Inoue to get the job done in front of more than 50,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum. “In addition to this incredible main event, we have a spectacular undercard highlighted by Jason Moloney, a road warrior who is coming to Japan determined to show he’s the world’s best bantamweight.”
The Tokyo Dome, which opened in March 1988, has a brief-but-storied boxing history. Four days after the venue’s grand opening, Mike Tyson defended the undisputed heavyweight championship with a second-round TKO over Tony Tubbs in front of 51,000 spectators. The last professional boxing event at “The Big Egg” took place in February 1990. In one of sport’s greatest upsets, James “Buster” Douglas knocked out Tyson in the 10th round to capture the undisputed crown.
Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs) won his first world title in April 2014 and has been flawless ever since. He sports an astounding 21-0 record in world title fights, including 19 knockouts. He became undisputed champion in two weight classes in 378 days, knocking out Paul Butler in December 2022 to become the bantamweight ruler and stopping Marlon Tapales last December to unify the junior featherweight division. Five months before the Tapales triumph, Inoue stopped the previously undefeated two-belt American champion, Stephen Fulton, in his junior featherweight debut. He was named 2023 Fighter of the Year by ESPN.com and Ring Magazine and makes his 2024 debut intent on solidifying his stranglehold over the division.
Nery (35-1, 27 KOs) is a former two weight world champion who won the WBC title at both bantamweight and junior featherweight. Nery lost his bantamweight title after missing weight for his 2018 rematch against Shinsuke Yamanaka, the man he dethroned for the belt the previous year. He won a decision over Aaron Alameda in 2020 to become a two-weight world champion. Nery’s unbeaten run ended the following year with a seventh-round stoppage loss to Brandon Figueroa in a title unification tilt. He has won four straight fights since the Figueroa setback, including a sensational 11th-round knockout over Azat Hovhannisyan last February in one of the year’s best fights.
Moloney (27-2, 19 KOs) won world title honors in his third attempt, turning back Filipino veteran Vincent Astrolabio by majority decision last May. He defended his WBO strap in January with a back-and-forth battle against Saul Sanchez in Quebec City, Canada. Moloney retained his title by majority decision and will travel to foreign soil once again. Takei (8-0, 8 KOs) is a southpaw who turned pro in March 2021 and quickly climbed the rankings. He last fought on the Inoue-Tapales undercard, knocking out Mario Diaz Maldonado in the second round. He went 23-2 with 16 knockouts as a kickboxer and held the K-1 Super Bantamweight Championship for nearly three years.
Moloney said, “I’ve always wanted to fight in Japan, and to do it on this huge show in front of a sold-out crowd at the Tokyo Dome is what dreams are made of. I want to be known as a throwback world champion. I won my title in America, defended it in Canada, and now I’m willing to go into enemy territory and defend my title in Japan against the undefeated Yoshiki Takei. I know the Japanese fans will enjoy this fight, and I look forward to making some new fans in Japan and all over the world. On May 6, I will show the world what the ‘Mayhem Era’ is all about!”