Undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya “The Beast” Inoue vs. Sam Goodman on December 24 will have to be postponed due to the Australian sustaining a cut over his left eye during a recent sparring session. The two were supposed to meet at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, in Tokyo, Japan.
No alternative?
No word yet on whether Inoue (28-0, 25 KO) will find a replacement opponent to save the date and the card. It doesn't seem like there was much interest from non-Australian fans in seeing Inoue defend against Goodman, 26, as the fight was viewed as a mismatch.
Fans won't complain if Inoue never reschedules the Goodman bout because that's not one of the names on people's wish list for the Japanese fighter to face.
They want Inoue to start fighting 50-50 fights, not 90-10. This is why Naoya is not popular outside his native Japan. He never puts himself in a position where he can lose by fighting guys who have a chance of beating him. He's not a risk taker.
Goodman has never beaten any top contender to earn his No. 1 ranking in the IBF and WBO. Boxing fans wanted to see Inouye take on a talented contender for a change, in Murodjon Akhmaliev or John Reel Casemiro. Goodman was just another in a long line of disappointing opponents that Inoue faced during his 12-year professional career.
Inoue has been taking his sweet time moving up to 126th to face the dangerous talent in the division, and some believe he suffers from stage fright, knowing that he is expected to fight such dangerous predators:
Rafael Espinosa
Bruce Carrington
King Vargas
Stephen Fulton
Angelo Liu
Brandon Figueroa
Suleiman Segawa
Would it take much for Inoue to fight one of these assassins? Many of these guys would be a real nightmare for Inoue, 31, and that could be why he is hesitant to move up to featherweight.
Goodman injured
disaster. Sam Goodman suffered an eye injury in his final clash before the undisputed fight with Naoya Inoue. Goodman's camp is now pushing for a postponement of the scheduled Christmas Eve fight in Tokyo. Goodman was scheduled to fly tomorrow #innogoodman pic.twitter.com/cdq6UpIMI8
– Ben Damon (@ben_damon) December 14, 2024
