The Naoya Inoue next fight sees the pound-for-pound boxing superstar defend his undisputed world super-bantamweight titles against MJ Akhmadaliev in September.
The 32-year-old is expected to win his next fight once again, but that most certainly isn’t a foregone conclusion against the former IBF 122-pound Uzbek king.
Naoya Inoue Next Fight: ‘Monster’ Set For Undisputed Super-Bantamweight Title Defense vs MJ Akhmadaliev
There is absolutely no question that Naoya Inoue is one of the greatest boxers in the world right now. He is undoubtedly in the top three pound-for-pound fighters in the world, and is perhaps even the stand-out #1.
The 32-year-old is a four-weight world champion, not to mention becoming the undisputed king of both the bantamweight and super-bantamweight division. The great ‘Monster’ is undoubtedly an all-time great and will go down in history as one of the most dominant fighters of all time.
Inoue has moved through the weights and continued knocking people out for fun. He has a reputation as a huge puncher, and is perhaps the p4p biggest puncher in the entire sport of boxing right now. Period.
Boasting a professional record of 30-0, Inoue unquestionably has one of the best resumés in all of boxing. Now, he aims to improve that record to 31-0 with a 28th knockout in his next fight later this year.
Despite not being officially confirmed yet, the Naoya Inoue next fight will be against former IBF super-bantamweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev. The fight is expected to take place in Tokyo in September, with an official announcement to follow in the next couple of months.
Inoue’s next fight is unsurprisingly one he will once again be the overriding favorite in with all boxing sportsbooks. Not only that, but Inoue is being heavily backed to win in destructive fashion with another highlight-reel knockout.
Naoya Inoue’s next fight is one he is expected to win, and win well. That being said, Akhmadaliev has lost just once before and will be confident of the upset after seeing Inoue dropped in his last fight by Ramon Cardenas. Time will tell if MJ is on the level of the great ‘Monster’.
Could Inoue Move Up To Featherweight After His Next Fight?
Provided the Naoya Inoue next fight results in victory, there could be some mammoth bouts planned next for the Japanese four-weight world champion.
Provided he wins his next fight against MJ Akhmadaliev, Inoue will likely move up to featherweight in 2026 with next to no serious challengers left for him to fight at super-bantamweight.
There is nobody left for Inoue to fight at 122-pounds apart from Akhmadaliev. So if he beats the Uzbek fighter before the end of the year, a move up to 126-pounds in a bid to become a five-weight world champion could very much be on the cards.
Inoue has already beaten one of the world featherweight kings in Stephen Fulton, so will be confident that he can win a world title in another weight class.
Fights with Nick Ball (WBA), Angelo Leo (IBF), Rafael Espinoza (WBO) and Fulton (WBC) are all fights boxing fans want to see the 32-year-old involved in in 2026.
Another potential clash for Inoue’s next fight after Akhmadaliev could be against fellow Japanese pound-for-pound star Junto Nakatani. That fight would undoubtedly be the biggest in Japanese boxing history, with Nakatani the next big star behind ‘Monster’.
First though, Naoya Inoue’s next fight must result in victory against MJ Akhmadaliev in September in their undisputed world super-bantamweight title clash.
