epoch game ‘Mentally exhausted’ Naoya Inoue knocks out goading Kim Ye-joon

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Japan’s Naoya Inoue (L) fights against South Korea’s Kim Ye-joon during their world super-bantamweight title boxing bout in Tokyo on January 24, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)

Japan’s unbeaten Naoya Inoue said he was mentally “exhausted” after knocking out a goading Kim Ye-joon to retain his undisputed world super-bantamweight titles in Tokyo on Friday.

Inoue is expected to take his prodigious skills to Las Vegas for his next fight and he bid farewell to his adoring fans in the Japanese capital with another ferocious performance.

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The 31-year-old “Monster” landed a juddering one-two combination near the end of the fourth round to knock out the South Korean, who stepped in to replace injured Australian Sam Goodman just two weeks before the fight.

The bout had already been postponed by a month from its original December 24 date when Goodman suffered a cut above his eye in training.

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Japan’s Naoya Inoue celebrates his victory against South Korea’s Kim Ye-joon during their world super-bantamweight title boxing bout in Tokyo on January 24, 2025. (Photo by Philip FONG / AFP)

Inoue said the disruptions had taken a toll and described the win as “a weight off my shoulders”.

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“I’m exhausted, but more than being physically tired, there has been a lot going on in the past two months,” he said.

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“My opponent got injured and the fight was postponed, then I got a different opponent. It has been difficult mentally.”

Inoue, who took his record to 29-0 with 26 knockouts, said his plan was to fight in Las Vegas in the spring.

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READ: Naoya Inoue opponent confident despite last-minute switch

He has also been tipped to fight in Saudi Arabia later this year after signing a sponsorship deal with the country’s Riyadh Season.

He has not fought outside Japan since he beat Michael Dasmarinas in Las Vegas in June 2021.

“I don’t know how complete I am as a boxer. I want to keep training so that I can keep improving until the end of my career,” said Inoue.

 Thundering combination

South Korea challenger Ye Joon Kim waits to compete for the unified WBC IBF and WBO super bantamweight world title against Japanese champion Naoya Inoue and at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Friday, Jan.24, 2025. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

The 32-year-old Kim, who grew up in an orphanage and did not take up boxing until he was 20, is ranked No. 11 by the WBO in the super-bantamweight division.

He had the chance to become South Korea’s first male world champion in almost 20 years but he had no answer when Inoue turned up the heat in the fourth round.

Kim’s fate was sealed when he reacted to an attack from Inoue by gesturing for the champion to come at him again.

Inoue duly obliged, landing a thundering combination to send the Korean to the canvas.

“I was planning to knock him out anyway so I don’t think he really needed to do that,” Inoue said.

READ: Naoya Inoue hunger not yet sated after unifying second weight division

Kim had beaten all seven Japanese fighters he had faced previously but said Inoue was “faster and stronger than I thought he would be”.

“Of course I came here to win, so this is difficult for me to take,” said Kim, who was fighting for a world title for the first time.

“My tactics were to get Inoue to come close to me and then hit him on the counter.”

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It was Inoue’s third title defence since becoming undisputed super-bantamweight world champion in December 2023.

It was also his 10th straight knock-out win.

Inoue said he was glad the fight was finally over.

In a statement on Thursday, the BSP said that as of Oct. 11, 2024, the total coin collection has already reached P1.008 billion.

“I gave everything to be ready for the fight in December, and then it was postponed 10 days before it was supposed to happen,” he said.

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“Then I gave it everything in training for the month after. I didn’t really feel it when I was training hardepoch game, but now that the fight is over, I feel very tired.”

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