Boxing
Naoya Inoue to headline Christmas Cracker show in Saudi Arabia
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Japan’s finest fighters will take centre stage in Saudi Arabia this Christmas, with Naoya Inoue headlining The Ring’s fifth show, live on DAZN.
Titled The Ring V: Night of the Samurai, undisputed super bantamweight champion Inoue, (31-0, 27 KOs) will take on unbeaten Mexican fighter David Picasso (32-0-1, 17 KOs) in the main event on Saturday, December 27.
Inoue has had a very active 2025, defending his undisputed status against Kim Ye-joon in January, Ramon Cardenas in May, and last week cruising past Murodjon Akhmadaliev.
Meanwhile, unified bantamweight title holder Junto Nakatani (31-0, 24 KOs) will make his debut at super bantamweight on the undercard against Sebastian Hernandez (20-0, 18 KOs), another undefeated fighter from Mexico.
Two of Japan’s biggest boxing stars, Inoue and Nakatani, appear to be on a collision course, with speculation that the pair will meet in a high-profile clash in 2026 - if both men get through their next opponents.
Each fight involves a Japanese fighter as the A-side, with former unified flyweight world champion Kenshiro Teraji (25-2, 16 KOs) moving up in weight to face IBF super featherweight title holder Willibaldo Garcia Perez (23-6-2, 13 KOs).
The rest of the card is filled with prospects, including flyweight Taiga Imanaga (9-0, 5 KOs) taking on Cuban Armando Martinez (16-0, 15 KOs). Brothers Reito and Hayato Tsutsumi are also in action, with both fighters favourites of boxing’s kingmaker Turki Alalshikh.
- Read next | Hamzah Sheeraz, Mark Chamberlain, Reito Tsutsumi - who are Turki Alalshikh's favoured fighters?
Younger sibling Reito (3-0, 2 KOs) only turned professional in May, with his fourth bout coming up against Mexican super featherweight Leobardo Quintana (11-1, 5 KOs).
Hayato will also compete against a super featherweight, with the experienced Brit James Dickens (36-5, 15 KOs) the next step in the Japanese rising star's fledgling career.
Dickens won the interim WBA super featherweight title in July, although it is currently unclear if the belt will be on the line out in Riyadh.
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