Eddie Hearn wants to strip Japanese Monster Naoya Inoue from the P4P list: “Duck his mandatory three times!”

Matchroom CEO Eddie Hearn makes derogatory remarks about the unified super bantamweight champion, Naoya Inoue's reign.

Eddie Hearn wants to strip Japanese Monster Naoya Inoue from the P4P list: “Duck his mandatory three times!”

Eddie Hearn makes ducking accusations at Naoya Inoue (Image via Boxing Social/Instagram)

The boxing community is home to many standout athletes, but there are not many boxers with impeccable records. Naoya Inoue is one of only three professional boxers to become an undisputed champion in two weight classes during the four-belt era. Despite this impressive achievement, Inoue has not managed to impress Eddie Hearn, the CEO of Matchroom Promotions.

Naoya Inoue is currently the unified bantamweight boxing champion and holds a perfect record in professional boxing. These achievements have often placed him among the top-ranked pound-for-pound boxers in the world. However, Matchroom Boss, Eddie Hearn disagrees with this assessment and has criticized Inoue’s professional boxing resume.

Why should Naoya Inoue get a pass to fight low-level opponents and duck his mandatory not once, not twice, but three times?… Inoue is a pound-for-pound great but his resume is pretty s**t to be honest. He’s beaten Stephen Fulton, good performance. But I think Inoue is very disappointing as a champion.

Eddie Hearn via IFL TV (Check from 5:50)
YouTube video

One reason for this may be Inoue’s limited experience fighting outside of Japan. According to Hearn, to be considered the top-ranked pound-for-pound fighter, the ‘Japanese Monster’ needs to compete against high-ranking opponents.

FS Video

This statement from the Matchroom boss follows Inoue’s recent victory over Ye Joon Kim a few days ago. Interestingly, after the fight, Inoue’s promoter, Bob Arum, also made an announcement. Arum revealed that the Japanese Monster’s next boxing outing would be in the United States.

Interestingly, despite having several major fight interests, Inoue has only fought in America three times throughout his professional career. As for Hearn, he does not have any personal animosity towards the Japanese boxer. However, there is an aspect of the fight game that has caused some frustration for the Matchroom boss.

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Naoya Inoue claps back at ‘ducking’ accusations from Matchroom Boxing

The reigning unified super bantamweight champion, Naoya Inoue, has chosen to overlook lucrative fights. As a legacy-focused boxer, the Japanese fighter is skilled at selecting matchups that suit him. However, this strategy has not sat well with his rivals. Currently, one of the potential threats to Inoue’s reign is the interim WBA super bantamweight champion, Murodjon Akhmadaliev.

Murodjon Akhmadaliev wants to fight Naoya Inoue
Murodjon Akhmadaliev wants to fight Naoya Inoue (Image via Bad Left Hook/Top Rank)

Akhmadaliev has been represented by Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Promotions since 2019. After joining the promotion, the Uzbek boxer became the WBA (Super) and IBF super bantamweight champion. However, he lost those titles to Marlon Tapales in 2023. The current champion of those titles, Inoue, appeared to take a jab at Akhmadaliev by referencing the only defeat in the Uzbek boxer’s career.

Why do I have to run away from someone who lost to Tapales? There’s zero need for it… If you want to fight, keep the “value” of winning and wait!! Now I’m fully focused on the Goodman fight.

Naoya Inoue via X (@naoyainoue_410)
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Interestingly, while Akhmadaliev lost by a split decision, Inoue decisively defeated Tapales with a knockout. As a result, the Japanese champion appears to have dismissed the possibility of a matchup with Akhmadaliev for now. However, since Inoue recently signed a sponsorship deal with Turki Alalshikh, it will be interesting to see what the Saudi delegate has planned for the Japanese Monster.

Related: Eddie Hearn compares Tyson Fury’s retirement talks with ‘Crying Wolf’