Boxing

Naoya Inoue vs Murodjon Akhmadaliev Set For Sept. 14 In Japan, Takei Headlines Undercard

Naoya Inoue vs. "MJ" Akhmadaliev made official, "The Monster" reveals this is his "best" opponent of his career.
Johan Alyas Blanco|
IMAGO / AFLOSPORT

Naoya Inoue vs. Murodjon Akhmadaliev has finally been made official for September, but it looks like the undercard is taking shape as well.

At a press conference early this morning, the card was made official for Sept. 14th, at the newly built Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan. It takes place the day after top pound-for-pound fighters Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford step in the ring for their mega-fight in Las Vegas.

Inoue vs. Akhmadaliev was reportedly a "done deal" back in May, but the bout couldn't be made official until Inoue got past Ramon Cardenas on May 4th, and Akhmadaliev beat Luis Castillo on May 30th. Both boxers respectively stopped their adversaries, officially letting this bout go through.

Inoue (30-0, 27 KOs) is The Ring's No. 2 ranked pound-for-pound fighter, along being the undisputed junior featherweight champion. Akhmadaliev (14-1, 11 KOs) is currently The Ring's No. 2 ranked fighter at 122 lbs, and has been the long-time WBA mandatory for Inoue's belts.

The two have one opponent in common, which is former unified WBA and IBF champion Marlon Tapales. Tapales (40-4, 21 KOs) handed "MJ" his only loss of his career, beating him by split decision on April 8th, 2023 to win the unified titles. However, in the very next fight, Inoue stopped Tapales to become undisputed at 122 lbs, knocking him out in the 10th round on Dec. 26th, 2023.

The Ring Magazine has reported that two other bouts were announced for the card. WBO bantamweight champion Yoshiki Takei (11-0, 9 KOs) will defend his belt for a third time against mandatory challenger Christian Medina (25-4, 18 KOs). The card will also see Yuni Takada (16-8-3, 6 KOs) face Ryusei Matsumoto (6-0, 4 KOs) for the WBA (regular) strawweight title.

A broadcast partner has not yet been announced.

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Johan Alyas Blanco
JOHAN ALYAS BLANCO

Johan Alyas Blanco is a writer for KO On SI. Before joining in March 2025, he worked as a News Producer in Tallahassee and Orlando. He also works for several fight promotions in boxing and MMA, working on social media content. When he’s not writing, Alyas covers boxing on his own YouTube channel, The Split Decision. Blanco has a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from UCF, with a minor in sports business management. Alyas has interviewed several big names in combat sports, including Jorge Masvidal, Edgar Berlanga and Brian Norman Jr. His goal is to bring boxing back to prominence.

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