It took Naoya Inoue getting off the canvas following a shocking second-round knockdown before rebounding to overwhelm Ramon Cardenas with too much firepower in an eighth-round TKO on Sunday night in Las Vegas.
After ending a busy boxing weekend with an exclamation point, the defending undisputed junior featherweight world champion stood victorious inside the ring at T-Mobile Arena and confidently confirmed his next opponent — Murodjon Akhmadaliev.
“Next, September, MJ,” Inoue confirmed through a translator on ESPN following his thrilling win over Cardenas.
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn had already confirmed the bout for September with a post on his X social media account Friday, with Inoue’s confirmation only adding to the early intrigue. The clash will pit the undefeated Japanese sensation Inoue (30-0, 27 KOs) against the Uzbekistan native Akhmadaliev (13-1, 10 KOs).
Earlier Sunday evening, during a sitdown interview shown on ESPN, Inoue also told Mark Kriegel about another fight he has in the works for 2026 — against fellow undefeated Japanese star Junto Nakatani (30-0, 23 KOs).
“Yes, if we both keep winning,” Inoue said, “that will materialize.”
