Why Naoya Inoue Should Be Fighter Of The Year

Naoya Inoue is tired. He made that clear in his post-fight interviews after defeating David Picasso at Riyadh Season’s The Ring V: Night of the Samurai, a major boxing event held on December 27, 2025.

The promotional poster showed Inoue dressed in samurai battle armor, and when I spoke with him days before the fight, he seemed to embody that image — a warrior carrying a heavy burden. He was clearly tired. I have interviewed him before, and even speaking through a translator, his answers were short, sweet, and to the point.

Inoue (32-0, 27 KOs) has every right to be tired; his 2025 boxing campaign was sensational, and perhaps the best of any fighter last year. The Ring Magazine and various award-granting entities should take note.

What Inouye did that no other fighter did

Naoya Inoue, world super bantamweight boxing champion of Japan during an April 5, 2025 press conference. | IMAGO / AFLOSPORT

Inoue’s long schedule is his strongest selling point.

If boxing can’t always give us the best fighting the best, then we at least have to reward the fighters who stay active and take real risks. We should want a sport where the best are active.

Naoya Inoue stepped into the ring four times in two countries and faced serious opposition each time. He might have taken it easier as his looming fight with Junto Nakatani will be the biggest in Japanese boxing history. But that’s not who he is — no shortcuts, no soft touches. That is unheard of in our current era of boxing.

That’s what matters, and that’s how you earn the title of Fighter of the Year.

Other Contenders for Fighter of the Year

One would likely argue that there's a three-man race for Fighter of the Year, which includes Inoue, Terence Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs), and perhaps Oleksandr Usyk (24-0, 15 KOs).

Usyk had a big win over Daniel Dubois (22-3, 21 KOs), stepping into the ring for the first undisputed heavyweight title fight in British history. Yet, that win isn’t as big as it first appears, as Usyk had already stopped Dubois once. The fight was further marred by social media footage that appeared to show Dubois attending a party at his house the day of the fight.

The other, and far stronger challenger, is Terence Crawford. Crawford chased history, jumping two weight classes to make the fight for the undisputed 168 lbs crown. Crawford's win was the performance of the year, to be sure. Canelo (63-3-2, 39 KOs) was the younger fighter, but arguably not the fresher of the two, having fought more frequently compared to Crawford.

A final pitch for The Monster

Naoya Inoue celebrates with boxing promoter Bob Arum after defending the world super-bantamweight title. — 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

Which brings us back to Naoya Inoue’s 2025 in the ring, where he defeated Kim Ye-joon (22-3-2, 10 KOs), Ramon Cardenas (27-2, 15 KOs), Murodjon Akhmadaliev (14-2, 11 KOs), and David Picasso (30-3, 18 KOs).

Sure, Kim Ye-joon is forgettable, other than the fact that his ring moniker is the unbelievable “Troublemaker Pacquiweather.” The others are all solid top 10 guys.

Above all, Uzbekistan’s Murodjon Akhmadaliev was supposed to be a real test for Inoue, yet he won a round or two and was shown that levels exist in the game of boxing. MJ is a great fighter and will bounce back for sure.

Whether Inoue wins Fighter of the Year or not, he deserves a long rest. Junto Nakatani (32-0, 24 KOs) might want one more fight before he meets Inoue to help put the memory of his recent performance behind him on the Riyadh Season card, where he struggled with Sebastian Hernandez.

Maybe he should tell his matchmaker about “Troublemaker Pacquiweather.”

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