Naoya Inoue Remains Undisputed After Bizarre Stoppage

The ending was anticlimactic, but Naoya Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) remains the undisputed super bantamweight champion with a seventh-round technical knockout win over TJ Doheny (26-5, 20 KOs).

The time of stoppage was 0:16. With the win, Inoue defends his undisputed status at 122 lbs for a second time. A stoppage win against Marlon Tapales in December last year allowed him to be crowned undisputed champion.

The fight headlined an Ohashi Promotions card at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan. Fight fans in the United States could catch the action live on ESPN+. Those in the United Kingdom could do so with Sky Sports. Lemino were the broadcaster in Japan.

Naoya Inoue Remains Undisputed With Stoppage Win

Naoya Inoue vs. TJ Doheny Fight Recap

Both fighters had a quiet opening round with neither willing to throw much. Doheny stayed along the ropes for the most part in the early rounds. This meant that Inoue was mostly pursuing his opponent around the ring.

Doheny did well to block punches with his arms in the first half of the bout, but this gradually brought down his arms. In round six, Inoue was landing some of his cleanest punches. It felt that the stoppage was imminent.

Only 16 seconds into round seven, Inoue landed body shots that caused Doheny to wince and move away. It caused referee Bence Kovacs to put an end to proceedings. Doheny appeared to have injured himself and did not stay for a post-fight interview. He left the ring limping with his arms around the shoulders of his team members. The exact nature of his apparent injury remains unknown at this time. Regardless, the end meant that Inoue again retained his super bantamweight world titles.

IT’S OVER.#InoueDoheny | @NaoyaInoue_410 pic.twitter.com/sftUzaxr3E

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) September 3, 2024

Post-Fight Interview

Naoya Inoue

“I know boxing is not easy,” said Inoue. “So I really wanted to slow him down, throw one at a time, giving my opponent the damage.”

“For me this fight ended the way it ended. Unexpected…but please expect me for the next match.”

Bob Arum was also asked about the bout and claimed that Inoue will fight once again in Japan by the end of the year, though an opponent or date was not confirmed. The promoter also said that Top Rank has plans to bring Inoue to Las Vegas, NV, sometime after that fight.

Yoshiki Takei Overcomes Knockdown to Defeat Daigo Higa

Yoshiki Takei (10-0, 8 KOs) overcame a knockdown and a determined Daigo Higa (21-3-1, 19 KOs) to win a unanimous decision and retain his world title.

Scores were 115-112 and 114-113 (x2). With the win, Takei successfully defends his WBO bantamweight title for the first time. He won the belt with a unanimous decision win over Jason Moloney in May this year.

The opening round was tentative with both fighters maintaining their distance from each other and not throwing much. Both men opened up in the second. Although Higa was having his moments, Takei was better able to establish his style in rounds two and three.

Early in round four, Higa had his opponent on the ropes and unleashed several punches. However, Takei was able to dealwith the barrage without going down, forcing Higa to back away to recover. The reigning champion banked rounds by being more active, allowing him to land more punches. Higa’s best moments in the fight came when he pressed forward to land his shots, but he did not do this often enough to win most of the rounds.

By round 11, both men were sporting cuts around their left eyes. With roughly a minute to go in the round, Takei was ruled knocked down after getting hit with a looping left hand on the ear, though he may have also slipped on the canvas logo. The Japanese fighter got up and was able to make it out of the round.

Thoughts on this knockdown? 👀#InoueDoheny | LIVE on @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/lbP1YZmNtz

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) September 3, 2024

In the twelfth, Takei swung for the fences despite being dropped in round 11. Higa was forced to be on the back foot as the reigning champion landed punch after punch. Despite this, Takei couldn’t force a stoppage or knock Higa down but had done enough by the final bell to win the fight on the judge’s scorecards.

Undercard Results

Andy Hiraoka (24-0, 19 KOs) won via ninth-round technical knockout against Ismael Barroso (25-5-2, 23 KOs). The time of stoppage for this 12-round super lightweight contest was 2:58. Barroso went down twice in round nine before his corner put an end to the fight.

Jin Sasaki (18-1-1, 17 KOs) won via seventh-round technical knockout against Qamil Balla (15-2-1, 8 KOs). The time of stoppage for this 12-round welterweight clash was 0:52. Balla went down once in round three. A barrage of punches from Sasaki in the seventh caused referee Michiaki Someya to put an end to proceedings.

Toshiki Shimomachi (19-1-3, 12 KOs) won a unanimous decision against Ryuya Tsugawa (13-2, 9 KOs). Scores for the 10-round super bantamweight bout were 97-92 and 96-93 (x2). Shimomachi went to the canvas once in round eight from a straight right hand.