Naoya Inoue and the Quest to Join Boxing’s Five-Weight World Champions

Boxing is a sport notorious for its pugilists often doing as much talking with their mouths as their fists.

Some very ordinary fighters have been able to trash talk their way into particularly lucrative bouts over the years, even if their talents in the ring often leave a little to be desired – bad blood (real or created), perhaps even more than skill, is what helps to sell fights.

But that’s a ‘Western’ mindset. Over in Asia, the majority of combat sports stars are, publicly at least, quietly spoken and respectful of their opponents and their art; keeping trash talk to an absolute minimum.

Japan has produced many world champion boxers over the years, from Masahiko ‘Fighting’ Harada to Jiro Watanabe, while the latest cab off the conveyor belt of talent – Naoya Inoue – has made huge strides of his own.

Nicknamed ‘The Monster’, which is both ironic (given his 5ft 5in height) and fitting thanks to his extraordinary punch-power, Inoue is – at the time of writing – a four-weight world champion.

Not only that, he’s one of just three male boxers to have reigned as the undisputed champion in two different weight classes in this four-belt era, alongside Terence Crawford and Oleksandr Usyk.

Also considered amongst the best pound-for-pound fighters on the planet by many, it’s amazing to think that Inoue – outside of Japan, at least – could go about his daily business and not be recognised, such is his under-the-radar status.

And yet, he’s closing in on joining the ranks of one of boxing’s most exclusive clubs – reserved only for the finest fighters ever to have laced up a pair of gloves….

King of the Mountain

Like most elite fighters, Inoue has some pedigree at amateur level.

But he’s not bedecked in Olympic medals or World Championship silverware like some; in fact, a gold at the President’s Cup in 2011 is as good as it got for the Japanese ace in the unpaid ranks.

Inoue turned professional at the precociously young age of 19, making his debut at flyweight in a four-round knockout victory over Crison Omayao.

Within a year, he’d racked up more wins and claimed the Japanese light-flyweight title from Ryoichi Taguchi, who himself would go on to become a world champion in years to come.

WBC Light Flyweight Title (2014)

Inoue continued to fight all-comers, albeit exclusively on Japanese soil, and in April 2014 he won his first world title: claiming the WBC light-flyweight gold in a stoppage win over Adrian Hernandez.

WBA Bantamweight Title (2018)

Remaining unbeaten, Inoue decided to step up in weight in 2018, taking on Jamie McDonnell for the WBA bantamweight strap. The Yorkshireman had never lost inside the distance in a 32-fight career to that point….Inoue becoming the first to stop McDonnell, winning in the first round no less, on his way to a title in a second weight division.

IBF Bantamweight Title (2019)

Before long, Inoue was on a collision course with another legendary Asian bantamweight, Nonito Donaire. Their first scrap in November 2019, which also acted as the World Boxing Super Series bantamweight final, was a slobberknocker: Inoue winning via a points decision despite suffering a broken nose and orbital bone.

WBC & WBO Bantamweight Titles (2022)

In December 2022, Inoue unified the bantamweight division. The prior June, he once again defeating his old nemesis Donaire to land WBC gold. This time, the margin of victory was far more conclusive, with the pound-for-pound star knocking out the Filipino in the second round of a frighteningly vicious display.

Six months later, Inoue completed the set at bantamweight, adding the WBO title with a knockout victory against Paul Butler.

Having cleaned up at 145lb, Inoue decided to step up in weight once again; this time to super-bantamweight.

WBC and WBO Super Bantamweight Titles (Jul 2023)

Never one to do things the easy way, the Japanese fighter opted to take on WBO and WBC champion Stephen Fulton in his first bout at the new level. But, if anything, the added weight has only served to make Inoue even more powerful, and he took care of the previously-unbeaten American inside eight rounds.

WBA and IBF Super Bantamweight Titles (Dec 2023)

On Boxing Day 2023, Inoue became the undisputed champion in a second weight – joining a very exclusive club – when dismantling WBA and IBF king Marlon Tapales, before he defeated two-weight world champion Luis Nery in front of a 43,000 crowd at the Tokyo Dome. That was a bout that broke all-time viewing records on Amazon Prime in Japan.

Keeping busy, Inoue took on TJ Doheny in Tokyo in September 2024, stopping the Irishman in seven rounds – the first time Doheny had been beaten inside the distance in a career spanning more than a decade.

He is, seemingly, unstoppable. A knockout ratio of 91.3% in world title fights is the best-ever figure recorded, and his next challenge will be stepping up in weight once again in search of more gold – this time in the featherweight division.

Although short in stature, others – including Manny Pacquiao – have paved the way for smaller guys to win titles in multiple weight divisions….

Boxing’s Greatest Multiple Weight World Champions

In women’s boxing, a handful of hall-of-famers have won versions of the world title at multiple weights.

Amanda Serrano took the unusual route of going up in weight before returning to the lower division later in her career, winning super-featherweight gold in 2011 before climbing through to light-welterweight titles in 2018.

Incredibly, Serrano would return as a super-flyweight in 2019, before unifying the featherweight division. It’s as much a feat of physical excellence as it is boxing supremacy.

Naoki Fujioka and Claressa Shields have won belts at five different weight limits, while in men’s boxing there is a clear standout in terms of multi-weight brilliance:

The graphic reads like a who’s who of boxing greats. Incredibly, two fighters became the first five-weight world champions just three days apart in 1988. In defeating James Kinchen on November 4, Thomas Hearns added super-middleweight gold to titles at welterweight, light-middleweight, middleweight and light heavyweight.

Three days later, Sugar Ray Leonard did likewise. Considered by many to be possibly the all-time best, Sugar Ray won welterweight, light middleweight, middleweight and super-middleweight, before adding light-heavyweight gold to his collection on November 7 with victory over Don Lalonde.

The other pugilist to win world titles at five different weights is Floyd Mayweather Jr, whose incredible career saw him win gold some 17 years after landing his first super-featherweight crown in 1998.

From there, ‘Money’ won the WBC lightweight strap in 2002, the WBC light-welterweight crown against the ever-game Arturo Gatti, versions of the welterweight title against Zab Judah and co, before triumphing in a super-fight against Oscar De La Hoya for the WBC light-middleweight championship.

As if all that wasn’t enough, Mayweather still found time to return to middleweight to defeat the likes of Pacquaio, as well as stepping back up to light-middleweight to beat the outstanding Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez.

De La Hoya, meanwhile, became boxing’s first sextuple weight world champion in 2004.

In his early days he was a supremely technical fighter in the lighter weight divisions, winning his first world title in 1994 at the super-featherweight mark against Jimmy Bredahl.

Within the next decade, De La Hoya also struck gold at lightweight, light-welterweight (against pound-for-pound great Julio Cesar Chavez in 1996), welterweight, light-middleweight and, finally, middleweight with a unanimous points victory over WBO champion Felix Sturm.

But all of those achievements pale in comparison to those of Manny Pacquiao, who remarkably won versions on the world title in EIGHT different weight divisions some 30lb apart!

Title fights against some outstanding talents, from Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez to Miguel Angel Cotto and Timothy Bradley, saw Pacquiao come out on top, while victory against Antonio Margarito in a light-middleweight showdown in 2010 saw the Filipino icon crowned as boxing’s first octuplet champion.

• Flyweight (WBC) – vs. Chatchai Sasakul (December 1998)
• Super Bantamweight (IBF) – vs. Lehlohonolo Ledwaba (June 2001)
• Featherweight (The Ring) – vs. Marco Antonio Barrera (November 2003)
• Super Featherweight (WBC) – vs. Juan Manuel Marquez (March 2008)
• Lightweight (WBC) – vs. David Diaz (June 2008)
• Light Welterweight (The Ring) – vs. Ricky Hatton (May 2009)
• Welterweight (WBO) – vs. Miguel Angel Cotto (November 2009)
• Light Middleweight (WBC) – vs. Antonio Margarito (November 2010)

Inoue, meanwhile, needs to win one more world title in a different weight class to join this illustrious group.

It seems that a move up to featherweight is a formality, although the Japanese star has suggested that the step up will ultimately be decided by ‘how I feel and how my body feels’ at the heavier weight.

If he does step up in grade, Inoue’s incredible power could well become even more fearsome.

Undisputed Champions in Two or More Weight Classes

Becoming the undisputed champion in a weight division in this four-belt era is exactly as described: an individual that wins the WBC, WBO, WBA and IBF gold is considered to have unified the division.

A growing army of male and female boxers have unified a weight division in the four-belt era, but – at the time of writing – only five had managed to do so at two different weights.

Claressa Shields and Katie Taylor have both done so; the Irishwoman clinching all four light-welterweight belts when defeating Chantelle Cameron in 2023, to go with her prior glories at lightweight.

In men’s boxing, three fighters have unified two divisions at the time of going to press:

Multi-Weight Undisputed World Champions (4-Belt Era)

Terence Crawford was the first of the trio to unify a division, doing so in 2017 when he landed the belts he needed to be crowned undisputed champion in the light-welterweight division.

Oleksandr Usyk started his journey towards undisputed status in the cruiserweight division in 2016, before clinching the remaining three belts in the division in 2018 with victories over Mairis Briedis (WBC) and Murat Gassiev (WBA and IBF).

Crawford added his first welterweight title that same year, although it would take him until 2023 to complete the set: his famous win over another pound-for-pound star, Errol Spence Jr, saw him handed the WBA, WBC and IBF straps to go with the WBO gold he had won five years later.

In 2019, Inoue started his own path towards undisputed status, claiming his first two belts in the bantamweight category. He would break out again in 2022, with those victories over Donaire and Butler in the space of six months ensuring the Japanese star unified the division.

When major boxing returned in 2021 following the health crisis, Usyk had bulked up and set his stall out to become a heavyweight champion of the world. And he wouldn’t have to wait too long to get started; his impeccable win over Anthony Joshua at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium securing him three versions of the heavyweight gold.

There would be more joy for the trio of stars in 2023. Crawford becoming the first man to become undisputed champion in two weight divisions in the four-belt era, while Inoue would slice his way through the super-bantamweight category after stepping up – a clean sweep would see him win all four titles after victory over former undisputed champ Luis Nery.

Usyk would unify the heavyweight division in 2024, ending Tyson Fury’s long unbeaten run and stealing away his WBC belt.

And then, also in 2024, you’ll see that Crawford has started out on a new journey: his win over Israil Madrimov secured him the WBA and WBO titles in the light-middleweight division. The American would go halfway to unifying a third weight division, which truly would be a remarkable achievement.

It’s highly unlikely – perhaps even biologically impossible – that Usyk will become a three-weight undisputed champion. At this stage of his career, slimming down to light-heavyweight would be nigh-on impossible.

All of which leaves the stage for Inoue and Crawford to become the first boxer in history to unify three different weight divisions. The American will likely have first dibs on doing so, although Inoue’s ascent is such that he could, potentially, cut through the featherweight division in just a handful of fights.

Who will create this unique slice of boxing history?

The Longest Unbeaten Streaks in Boxing

At the time of writing, Inoue boasts a 28-0 record.

It’s a remarkable winning streak that dates back more than a decade, however that is a mere drop in the ocean compared to the longest unbeaten runs in boxing.

In years gone by, fighters would take to the ring multiple times per year – in the modern era, it’s doubtful that a boxer at the elite level will find more than three times per calendar year.

But not so the likes of Carlos Monzon and Willie Pep. For context, Pep is said to have had 241 professional fights – winning an incredible 229 of them, including streaks of 62 and 72 consecutive victories. That ‘Will o’ the Wisp’ nickname was well earned.

Sugar Ray Robinson’s career is the stuff of legend. He once embarked on an 88-fight unbeaten run, in an era that saw him defeat the likes of Jake LaMotta, Kid Gavilan and Rocky Graziano.

Julio Cesar Chavez is the only fighter on the list from the contemporary era. The incredible Mexican went unbeaten in 89 fights, finally losing out to Frankie Randall some 14 years into his professional career in 1994.

As for Jimmy Wilde, well, the numbers speak for themselves. The Welshman took on all comers – despite being a flyweight, he is known to have scrapped with bantamweights and even featherweights, such was his punch power and resistance.

The Tylorstown Terror went 93 fights unbeaten from 1911 to 1915 – yes, you read that currently, he fought 93 times in just four years!

Of course, many of those bouts were contested over six rounds or fewer, but even so Wilde’s achievement will surely never be beaten.