Boxing

Naoya Inoue's Next Opponent Revealed

Naoya Inoue will make his return to the United States in his next fight.
Nathaniel Marrero|
Naoya Inoue celebrates with boxing promoter Bob Arum after defending the world super-bantamweight title at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan on January 24, 2025.
Naoya Inoue celebrates with boxing promoter Bob Arum after defending the world super-bantamweight title at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan on January 24, 2025. | IMAGO/AFLOSPORT

The return of "The Monster" now has a date and an opponent.

The Ring reported that pound-for-pound great and undisputed junior featherweight champion Naoya Inoue is targeting a return On June 14 in Las Vegas, where he plans to face David Picasso. Picasso (30-0-1, 17 KOs) is the No. 1 contender for the WBC belt.

The bout will either take place at the T-Mobile Arena or MGM Grand.

Inoue (29-0, 26 KOs), who is ranked No. 2 in The Ring's pound-for-pound rankings, last fought in the United States on June 19, 2021, when he stopped Michael Dasmarinas in the third round. His last eight bouts have all come in Japan.

Inoue's last bout came on Jan. 25, when he stopped Ye Joon Kim in the fourth round. Kim was a late replacement after Sam Goodman was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a cut over his right eye. Goodman and Inoue, 31, were also supposed to fight on Dec. 24, but the same injury caused the first cancellation.

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Picasso's best win came on Aug. 24 when he defeated Azat Hovhannisyan by unanimous decision. Hovhannisyan had a back-and-forth war against Luis Nery the fight prior and lost by 11th-round stoppage on Feb. 18, 2023. Nery is the only fight to knock Inoue down, though, The Monster came back to stop him in the sixth round on May 6.

Picasso, 24, has only fought outside of Mexico twice in his career. His last bout of a 3rd round stoppage of Yehison Cuello.

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Nathaniel Marrero
NATHANIEL MARRERO

Nathaniel Marrero is a writer for the Boxing, Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Ravens On SI sites. He's also written for the Orlando Sentinel and MLB.com, and was a part of UCF's sports show, Hitting The Field. He attended UCF and graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism in 2023. Twitter/X: Nate_Marrero

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