Japanese Inoue defended the title of absolute world champion in a fight with Nakatani

Japanese boxer Naoya Inoue retained the status of the absolute world champion in the weight category up to 55.22 kg. The match against compatriot Junto Nakatani took place on May 2 in Tokyo and ended with Inoue's victory following a judicial decision.

The fight lasted all 12 rounds and ended with Inoue's victory by decision of the judges. For the 33-year-old athlete, this defense was the eighth under the WBC and WBO versions, as well as the seventh under the IBF and WBA lines. He once again confirmed the status of the absolute champion in his weight class.

Inoue now has 33 wins, of which 27 were won by knockout, with no defeats. Previously, he also became the undisputed champion in the lighter weight, up to 53.52 kg, and became the second boxer in history to unify all four major titles in two weight categories after expanding the number of versions.

His opponent Junto Nakatani, who is 28 years old, suffered the first defeat of his career. Prior to that, he had 32 wins, including 24 knockouts. He previously held championship belts in three weight categories.

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On April 5, former world boxing champion Tim Tszyu, the son of Russian boxer Konstantin Tszyu, won the belt of the international champion of the World Boxing Organization (WBO) in the weight category up to 72.6 kg. In a duel held in Wollongong, Australia, he inflicted the first defeat in his career to the Albanian Denis Nuriu. The victory was awarded to Tszyu by unanimous decision of the judges.