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Unified super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) weighed in at 121.8 pounds, while his replacement challenger Ye Jun Kim (21-2-2, 13 KOs) weighed in at 121.7 pounds for their main event on Friday, January 24, 2011. . Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.
(Credit: Naoka Fakuda)
Somber scale
The balance had a funereal feel to it, with no one smiling, the warriors had grim expressions on their faces. Inoue was scheduled to defend against Sam Goodman, but suffered an injury in camp and had to be replaced by Kim.
For fans outside of Australia, Kim and Goodman are interchangeable. There is no difference. Both are light punchers and pose no threat to Inu, and are not elite fighters. It would be nice if a replacement opponent could be found quickly. It’s too bad to dig up a better opponent to make it interesting.
Who is Kim?
Not much is known about Kim because he has spent his 13-year professional career fighting lesser opponents. He did nothing to earn a title shot, even as a replacement opponent.
It’s amazing how Team Ino chose him over someone who the fans had already heard about and who could give Naoya a run for his money. This was probably not what they wanted because it would have been dangerous for Eno to have someone prepare two weeks for his style.
Friday’s Inoue-Kim event airs on ESPN+ at 4:15 am ET/ 1:15 am PT. Die-hard boxing fans in America can get up early to catch the event. But that’s it.
The 31-year-old Eno doesn’t have anyone that boxing fans are excited to see since his fight with Stephen Fulton in 2023. That fight excited many people in America. Since then, Naoya has defeated these fighters:
– TJ Doheny
– Louis Neary
– Marlon Tapals
