Could we see Nick Ball face Naoya Inoue before the end of the year?

Speculation has long linked the Scouser with a bout against two-division undisputed champion Naoya Inoue, who is scheduled to fight Murodjon Akhmadaliev next month. 

As one of the hottest properties in boxing, Inoue has his pick of opponents. Ball, who is Britain’s only current world champion, is among them. 

• Read next | As Nick Ball reigns alone, what happened to Britain’s last sole world champion?

Turki Alalshikh’s plans for Japanese-focused card 

Turki Alalshikh is clearly influential when it comes to setting up bouts, and when it involves names as big as Inoue, it appears that any fight between ‘The Monster’ and Ball would have to be approved by boxing’s kingmaker. 

Inoue is a Riyadh Season ambassador, having signed a deal with Alalshikh towards the end of 2024. Ball has also appeared on cards in Saudi Arabia, indicating that he is also liked by Alalshikh. 

Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing

Back in June, it was implied that Alalshikh wanted to see Inoue fight in Saudi Arabia on December 27, as the headliner of a Japan vs Mexico themed card. The original opponent suggested was Mexican featherweight David Picasso. 

Alalshikh told The Ring at the time: “In December, we have The Monster. The real monster. On December 27, we have Inoue. We are close to finishing Inoue against Picasso as the main event. The card will be built as the biggest fights between Japan and Mexico.” 

Talk of a Japan-Mexico show has since cooled. Alalshikh has previously said he would to see Ball face Inoue, improving the Liverpudlian’s chances of a shot at one of the best pound-for-pound fighters currently active. 

• Read next | Who are Turki Alalshikh's favoured fighters?

Will Naoya Inoue’s 2026 plans for Junto Nakatani impact Nick Ball bout? 

When Junto Nakatani unified the World Boxing Council (WBC) and International Boxing Federation (IBF) titles at bantamweight, Inoue sent a message to his fellow countryman, welcoming him to the super-bantamweight division. 

But Inoue has previously said that he intends to move up four pounds to featherweight, the division where Ball currently reigns. Inoue has recently stated that as he gets older, it is harder to put on weight and remain as effective as he has been in numerous divisions.  

Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP

Moving up to featherweight and then to come back down to 122lbs to face Nakatani would be an ordeal, especially if Inoue plans to return at any point to 126lbs.  

It may be safer for Inoue to fight Nakatani first, before moving up to chase a world title at a fifth weight class. 

• Read next | Inoue, Nakatani: How Japan are dominating boxing's pound-for-pound list

Are both Naoya Inoue and Nick Ball looking too far ahead? 

Boxing promoters love to plan out the careers of their fighters, plotting out how their prospects will rise through the ranks from domestic belts to world titles.  

But some boxers have started to think two fights ahead with concrete ideas of opponents, forgetting that even the best-laid plans can easily be disrupted. 

As recently as May, Caleb Plant’s comeback fight against José Armando Reséndiz was meant to be a tune up ahead of a bout with Jermall Charlo, who was also in action on the same card. 

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Charlo took care of Thomas LaManna with a sixth-round stoppage, but Plant could not replicate that performance in the main event. Reséndiz took a split decision, and with it, the WBA interim title at super middleweight. 

Not only did that prevent Plant from his planned bout with Charlo, it also quashed his hopes of a rematch with undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Álvarez. 

Inoue has admitted that he feels like he does not have much time left before retiring from the sport, which explains why he would plan out his next bouts into 2026. 

But a loss for either man would severely nix chances of Ball and Inoue sharing a ring. 

Ball's next opponent, Goodman, came close to an Inoue bout, indicating that he is no slouch. Similarly, Akhmadaliev is a former world champion at 122lbs, and will truly believe that Inoue is beatable.  

That is one of the reasons why Inoue is so respected in the world of the sweet science – clearly the top dog in his division, he still pursues the hardest possible challenges.  

• Read next | Best fights of 2025 so far

Riyadh Season’s traditional big show to end the year yet to be announced 

2025 has already been packed full of boxing action, with cards announced well in advance. We are still four months away from the final month of the year, with no major card announced for December. 

Over the last few years, Riyadh Season have put on a big boxing show in the final two weeks of December.

In 2023, The Day of Reckoning on December 23 included stars such as Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder, and Joseph Parker, whilst on December 21 in 2024, Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk met once again in a keenly-anticipated heavyweight bout. 

Whilst Riyadh Season encompasses a few months of the next year, the last two years show that there have been a concentrated effort to put on a star-studded card right at the end of the calendar year. 

Inoue’s name and stature is of a similar ilk to Fury, Usyk, and Joshua, so it feels likely that ‘The Monster’ will be involved. Whether Ball will be his opponent, is yet to be confirmed. 
 

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