By Michael Coopinger
January 18, 2023
Source: ESPN
Photo Source: Boxing Scene
Stephen Fulton and Naoya Inoue have agreed to terms for a unified 122-pound title fight in the spring in Japan, sources told ESPN on Wednesday.
The fight for Fulton's WBC and WBO junior featherweights titles is being targeted for May, sources said, though a date has not been set. The bout will be streamed on ESPN+ in the morning stateside, according to sources. Inoue often fights on Tuesdays in Japan.
Fulton, 28, is ESPN's No. 1 boxer at 122 pounds. Inoue, who is a major star in Japan, is ESPN's No. 2 pound-for-pound boxer. Nicknamed "The Monster," Inoue unified all four 118-pound titles last month in Tokyo with an 11th-round KO of Paul Butler to capture the undisputed bantamweight championship.
Inoue, 29, announced on Friday that he will relinquish all four belts as he prepares to campaign at 122 pounds. A fight with Fulton will present an opportunity for Inoue to establish dominance in his new weight class right out of the gate.
Fulton (21-0, 8 KOs) isn't simply the best fighter at 122 pounds; he's also one of the best regardless of weight. A fight featuring Fulton and Inoue is among the best matchups the sport can deliver.
Fulton, who hails from Philadelphia and has never fought outside of the United States, is promoted by PBC, while Inoue is co-promoted by Top Rank, two promotional companies who rarely do business with one another. However, Inoue's Japanese promoter, Mr. Honda, drives the direction of the three-division champion's career, especially when those fights are in Inoue's homeland.
Fulton told ESPN in June that he believed a fight with Inoue was "realistic" if Inoue moved up to 122 pounds in time.
"I don't shy away from big fights," Fulton said then. "A lot of people wanna see [me vs. Inoue]; a lot of people wanna talk about that as well.
"Had I been more known like Inoue," he added, "I'd be on that [pound-for-pound] list."
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