Sam Goodman suffered an eye injury and will have to withdraw from his Jan. 24 fight against unified super lightweight champion Naoya “The Monster” Inoue. The two boxers were scheduled to compete at the Ariake Arena in Koto Ward, Tokyo, Japan.
Goodman out
IBF and WBO No. 1 contender Goodman’s No Limit Boxing promoter reported “a recurrence of his eye injury.” They haven’t said when Goodman (19-0, 8 KOs) will be healthy enough to reschedule his fight with the undefeated Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs).
If Goodman is out for an extended period with an injury, Inoue will have to decide whether to give up on him and step up, or sit back and wait. This isn’t a big fight that fans outside of Australia are interested in watching.
Fans are hoping Inoue will replace interim WBA champion Muroddjohn Akhmedaliyev (13-1, 10 KOs) as a backup, as it would be an upgrade in talent. Akhmedaliyev and his promoters have long pushed for a fight with Inoue without success.
This would be the ideal time. At this point in his career, Inoue has no pressure and can do whatever he wants. He’s Canelo in the 122-pound division.
“Unlimited Boxing regrets to announce that Sam Goodman has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled January 24 bout against Naoya Inoue due to a recurrence of an eye injury.
We wish Sam a speedy and full recovery and will provide an update on the event in due course. “
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