Jim Lampley Reveals His Two Favorite Fighters To Watch Right Now

To be atop Jim Lampley's list of favorite fighters to watch is no small feat.

Ahead of his return to ringside to do blow-by-blow commentary on Friday for the Times Square card in New York after an over six-year hiatus, Lampley spoke to KO on SI about his favorite fighters to watch right now.

The 2015 International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee named undisputed junior featherweight champion Naoya Inoue and WBC light heavyweight champion David Benavidez as his favorite fighters to watch.

He’s back! pic.twitter.com/AkmBGNLw5N
— Dan Canobbio (@DanCanobbio) May 1, 2025

"Naoya Inoue because of the cosmic talent and the punching power," Lampley told KO on SI. "I am a huge fan of David Benavidez, and I can't wait to see what happens next with David Benavidez. So I'll put those two into the same sentence. Benavidez, with his spectacular punching power and Inoue with his combination of amazing skill and punching power."

Inoue (29-0, 26 KOs) makes his return stateside on Sunday when he faces Ramon Cardenas at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. "The Monster" is reportedly lined up to face Murodjon Akhmadaliev in September and is eyeing a fight against fellow undefeated Japanese star, WBC bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani (30-0, 23 KOs) at the Tokyo Dome in 2026, which is one of the biggest and best fights that can be made in boxing.

Inoue has won 10-straight fights inside the distance, including a fourth-round knockout of Ye Joon Kim in his last fight on Jan. 24.

Be careful what you ask @NaoyaInoue_410 for 🫣#InoueCardenas | MAY 4 | @ESPN pic.twitter.com/BAewl3vQuA
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) April 30, 2025

Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) is a two-time WBC super middleweight world champion and was elevated to WBC light heavyweight champion after Dmitry Bivol was stripped of the title. Benavidez is coming off an impressive unanimous decision victory over the previously undefeated David Morrell on Feb. 1.

Benavidez is expected to make his first title defense later in the summer of 2025, potentially against former super middleweight champion and interim WBO light heavyweight champion Callum Smith.

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