Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue does not intend to make an astronomical leap past super featherweight according to his most recent interview, which rules out a fight with Gervonta Davis that had been speculated could occur by former Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza. While Davis had recently already shot down the notion of him fighting Inoue due to the disparity in weight classes, Inoue’s recent statements now seem to heavily dwindle the chances of a mega-fight between the two occurring.
Currently, Naoya Inoue (26-0, 23 KO’s) seems to have settled well at super bantamweight/junior featherweight following his December 26th bout against former unified 122 lbs champion Marlon Tapales (37-4, 19 KO’s), and the Japanese champion does not intend to move up unless his body indicates otherwise.
“I always want to show the best Naoya Inoue. I wouldn’t decide to start fighting at featherweight or super featherweight just because the money is good,” Inoue told Ring Magazine reporter/contributor Daisuke Sugiura.
“I don’t think that’s what I want. There are many fighters who have chased the money but ended up not being able to perform well and quit. The reason I box is not for the money; I do this to show my best self. It’s also true that I’m motivated by fighting strong opponents, but there are weight divisions in boxing for a reason.“
Though Stephen Espinoza had mentioned the profitability of a fight between Naoya Inoue and Gervonta Davis (29-0, 27 KO’s), Inoue appears unwilling to follow the trend of moving up or down weight classes for money-spinning fights. This is further unlikely due to the fact Davis is currently still considered a lightweight which is three divisions up from the super bantamweight division where Inoue last fought.
During his interview with Sugiura, Inoue further expanded on his process of and reasoning behind moving up in weight classes.
“I don’t need to build my body up to move up to featherweight,” Inoue explained.
“I’ll move up once my body naturally grows into the heavier weight class. This has been the case throughout my professional career.“
Inoue, 30, also admitted to coming close towards the end of his career, expecting to continue fighting for five more years until he would call it quits.
“Now I am entering the last five years,” Inoue said. “I have been thinking of the first five years, the middle five years, and the last five years.“
While a fight with Gervonta Davis may no longer be on the cards, Inoue will still be entertaining the public for several more years against the best competitors available. Following his December 26th bout against Tapales, Inoue currently occupies a position as the #2 best pound-for-pound fighter in the world according to Ring Magazine.
Despite being one of the most prevalent fighters in the world, however, Inoue spoke on possibly fighting in America in the future, remarking that it still served as the sort of ‘Mecca’ to boxing when it comes to the acknowledgement of one’s skills, and the popularity and potential earnings that could be gained by staging a fight in the United States.
“I always have [had] a desire to fight in the U.S.,” Inoue admitted.
“Yes, I definitely want to fight there again. However, Japan is now becoming a big market too. I think the reason behind wanting to capture the “American Dream” is that if you accomplish something in the U.S, name recognition and big money will follow.
“But, nowadays, in this streaming era, if you are successful in Japan, you can make millions even in the lighter-weight divisions. That’s why [Stephen] Fulton came to Japan, and the big fights are easier to make in Japan.“
