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World champion waiting for Naoya Inoue’s last move at the weight: “He could fight me first”

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World champion waiting for Naoya Inoue’s final move up in weight: “He could fight me first”

The featherweight world champion believes his marketing potential in Japan will be enough to secure a lucrative clash with Naoya Inoue.

The undisputed super bantamweight king is apparently considering his options after defeating Junto Nakatani to retain his four world titles earlier this month.

It was an elegant performance that saw Inoue claim a unanimous decision victory, with fans now clamoring for him to face unified super flyweight king Jessy “Bam” Rodriguez.

During Rodriguez’s next appearance June 13 against WBA champion Antonio VargasThe 26-year-old will move up to 118 pounds and try to become a world champion in three weight classes.

After that, it’s highly likely that “Bam” will be the top contender for the fight against Inoue, who has said he will stay at 122 pounds for one more fight and then move up to featherweight before retiring.

If and when he does indeed move up to 126 pounds, “The Monster” will almost certainly jump straight into a world title fight against one of the four champions.

One of them is Angelo Leo, the IBF champion who believes he has an advantage over Bruce Carrington, Rafael Espinoza and Brandon Figueroa.

That’s because the American has already impressed Japanese fight fans, with his last fight ending in a majority decision victory over Tomoki Kameda in Osaka, Japan.

At the same time, Leo admitted it Fighting the noise that he may have to unify the 126-pound division to secure a potential Inoue fight.

“I wouldn’t put it off [Inoue to choose] for me to be the first to fight at featherweight, just because I’m already established in Japan.

“But I think a unification fight would probably be the best option.”

Since Leo’s IBF title defense against Ra’eese Aleem was unsuccessful earlier this month, the 32-year-old has not fought since defeating Kameda in May 2025.

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Tim Bradley warns Lamont Roach against title fight against William Zepeda

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Image: Lamont Roach Told To 'Take The Judges Out Of It' Against William Zepeda

“You have to create more separation in this fight. Your fights have to be too close together, man,” Bradley said on his YouTube channel. “You compete, but you don’t compete to win. You’re just there, brother.

“You’ve got to take these guys out, man. That’s what you’ve got to do. You’ve got to take the judges out of this.”

Bradley also urged Roach to boost his activity against Zepeda’s indiscriminate attacks.

“You have to be more energetic than you have been in the last few fights. That’s how you’re going to do it,” Bradley said. “Some refs like guys who are busier than the other guy. They just throw shots and whether they land or not, they just throw punches.”

Roach (25-1-3 (10 KO)) enters the fight after a series of close fights. In March, he fought Gervonta Davis to a draw and later fought Isaac Cruz to a draw. Prior to these fights, Roach scored a split decision victory over Hector Garcia.

Zepeda (33-1 (27 KO)) is coming off the only loss of his career, a unanimous decision loss to Shakur Stevenson in July 2025. The Mexican high-pressure fighter remained competitive throughout the competition and now he gets another chance to win the world title.

Zepeda has built its reputation on constant pressure and high impact performance. The Mexican received a chance to fight for the vacant WBC title after Shakur Stevenson retired from the belt.

The winner of the Aug. 1 fight will emerge as the recent WBC lightweight champion and potentially prepare for top fights in one of boxing’s deepest divisions.

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Canelo Alvarez answers the world champion’s call with a 90% knockout rate.

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Canelo Alvarez responds to call-out by world champion with 90% knockout ratio

Canelo Alvarez will soon return to the 168-pound scene, and there are plenty of fresh fighters at this weight who are hoping to get a chance to face him. One of those fighters is the newly crowned world champion, and Canelo has now answered his call.

Canelo lost all four recognized super middleweight world titles to Terence Crawford in September and have since been captured by Hamzah Sheeraz (WBO), Jaime Munguia (WBA), Osleys Iglesias (IBF) and Christian Mbilli (WBC). whom he will face in September.

However, if Sheeraz and Iglesias manage to reclaim the 168-pound throne against Mbilla, they have made it clear that they would like to pursue a potential unification against the Mexican superstar.

Although in a recent interview, Iglesias suggested that Canelo “wouldn’t want” to face him, believing he wouldn’t get a chance to unify despite his position as the current IBF world champion.

“It’s complicated. It’s complicated with Canelo. Canelo wouldn’t want to fight me. I hope he gave me this fight and allowed me to show that Cuban fighters, and more specifically Osleys Iglesias, are a different breed.

“We leave it to God and he will give me a chance to fight him.”

In response, Canelo said now DAZN Boxing that Iglesias and Sheeraz could get that chance by facing each other.

“I’ve never checked it [potential fights with Hamzah Sheeraz or Osleys Iglesias]. I think they have to fight each other and then I will choose the winner. It’s the smartest thing they can do.

“At some point we all have to earn what we deserve, right? They have to earn it [a fight with me]why not? That’s why I say they have to [fight each other] and I’m not saying they don’t deserve it.

“They deserve it, that’s why they’re there as champions, number one or whatever.

“But they have to fight each other and then, after my fight, we will see.”

Iglesias, who has 14 knockouts in 15 wins, is believed to be in talks to make a hard first defense against reigning WBC middleweight world champion Carlos Adames, who will soon relinquish the belt before moving up to the super middleweight division.

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Bruce Carrington sees a Rafael Espinoza fight coming, but the top fighter may be taking a gamble

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Image: Bruce Carrington Sees Rafael Espinoza Fight Coming, But Top Rank May Be Taking A Risk

“To be candid, it looks like they’re planning for me and Espinoza to meet at the end,” Carrington said. Ring. “That’s what it looks like, it’s a massive crescendo, me and him having a dream fight. I think that’s what they’re trying to set up, so I’m not mad about it at all.”

From a business perspective, the strategy makes sense. Carrington holds the WBC featherweight title and represents one of Top Rank’s biggest American hopes. Espinoza holds the WBO belt and has become one of the most captivating champions in this division.

The problem is that Espinoza has already ruined a similar plan once.

Before meeting Espinoza, Robeisy Ramirez seemed destined for stardom. The two-time Olympic gold medalist won the WBO featherweight title and seemed poised to become one of Top Rank’s attractions. Instead, Espinoza defeated Ramirez twice in grueling fights. The rematch ended with Ramirez’s injury, which excluded him from the ring for over a year, and the Cuban is no longer a member of Top Rank.

Carrington (17-0 (10 KO)) is also showing signs of vulnerability.

The 29-year-old Brooklyn native was blindsided by Carlos Castro before scoring a ninth-inning stoppage goal in January. Early in his career, Carrington avoided fighting with a 10-round majority decision over Sulaiman Segawa in a fight that many observers considered much closer than expected.

Carrington, 29, is not a newborn prospect with years to develop. If Top Rank believes he can beat Espinoza, there is an argument that the time to take the fight will come sooner rather than later.

Espinoza (28-0 (24 KO)) presents problems Carrington hasn’t encountered. The 6-foot-1 Mexican champion combines unrelenting pressure, high impact power and proven durability. These traits helped him beat Ramirez twice and change the featherweight landscape.

Carrington is scheduled to make an optional defense against undefeated Rene Palacios on July 4 in Cleveland. Espinoza currently has no fight scheduled.

If both continue to win, the matchup that Carrington described as a “dream fight” could ultimately become one of the biggest fights in the division. However, Top Rank has already seen how threatening Espinoza can be to carefully laid plans.

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