Undefeated Australian boxing star Sam Goodman’s highly anticipated fight with Japanese undisputed junior featherweight champion Naoya Inoue has been called off once again, as Goodman has suffered a recurrence of the eye injury that initially postponed the originally scheduled bout.
According to Goodman’s promoter, No Limit Boxing, the 19-0 contender’s injury is preventing him from facing the undisputed junior featherweight champion, Inoue, in their rescheduled fight.
The two were originally set to meet on December 24 in Tokyo, Japan but Goodman sustained a cut over his left eye during sparring just days before the event, leading to a postponement. The fight was rescheduled for January 24, but now, due to a recurrence of the same injury, Goodman will not be able to compete.
Goodman, who holds the IBF’s mandatory contender status and is ranked No. 1 by the WBO, has yet to confirm how this setback will affect his standing with the sanctioning bodies. Inoue, undefeated at 28-0 with 25 knockouts, now faces uncertainty about his next move, with the immediate expectation being that his team will search for a replacement opponent to keep the January 24 date intact.
This is a truly sad situation of bad luck for the Aussie, if Inoue moves forward with another opponent for January 24, Goodman may never get another crack at the undisputed title Inoue holds. The Japanese star could move up to featherweight or just pick other fighters, Goodman could have to earn his position again to land another chance at the title.
More details will follow as the situation develops.
