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Naoya Inoue Next Fight: Date, Venue, and Opponent

Published 01/15/2021, 8:15 AM EST

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Following a sensational 2020 with a KO win over Jason Moloney, WBA and IBF super-bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue is eyeing an early return in 2021. Not only that, but the possible fight can happen in Japan, citing a blockbuster event for Inoue amid his home crowd.

While ‘The Monster’ has two different world titles around his shoulder, he will seemingly face the IBF mandatory Michael Dasmarinas in his upcoming appearance. Although it is still not officially revealed, Asian Boxing has reported it to be a possibility.

The Japanese superstar was present in a boxing event at Korakuen Hall. It was headlined by Keita Kurihara and Inoue’s brother Takuma Inoue. While Inoue has had several options ahead, the event-manager Hideyuki Ohashi explained that he would box Dasmarinas next.

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Given that Dasmarinas is the mandatory challenger, fans will begin analyzing the duo and comparing their fight styles as they gear up to watch yet another title defense.

Naoya Inoue vs Michael Dasmarinas- What can we expect?

Akin to Inoue, Dasmarinas is also a young looming prodigy of the active super bantamweight roster. After losing his second professional fight in 2014, ‘Hot and Spicy’ Dasmarinas is on a 12-fight unbeaten streak with one draw in between. So, he clearly deserves a crack at the world title.

However, he hasn’t faced anyone like Inoue before. Having set a clean record of 20 wins with 17 KOs, Naoya Inoue is one of the most talented pugilists of this era. He is a lethal knockout artist and needs to time one right shot to vanquish his opponents.

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That said, Dasmarinas has been inactive since his last fight against Artid Bamrungauea in 2019. The long -layoff can significantly hamper his performance against an active superstar like Inoue. However, ‘Hot Spicy’ also has some superior skills with raw power. So, he can land an upset against ‘Monster’ to grab the super bantamweight world titles.

Post this fight, the boxing world will understand the future of the division and predict some possible moves for the current champion. It can also include Inoue’s shift to the junior lightweight roster.

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Do you think Naoya Inoue can retain his titles in 2021?

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Written by:

Raj Sarkar

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A senior boxing writer at EssentiallySports, Raj Sarkar is a mass media graduate who is currently pursuing his master’s degree in broadcast journalism. In addition to his current role, he has worked with the MMA team at EssentiallySports and has interviewed prominent fighters such as Ritu Phogat and 'The Red King' Rory MacDonald. He combined his bachelor's degree with his adoration for combat sports and has a combined 2000 plus bylines in MMA and boxing over the last two years.
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