Ben Damon of FOX Sports activities Australia had this on X, together with a photograph of the reduce:
Catastrophe. Sam Goodman has been reduce over the attention in his closing spar earlier than the undisputed battle with Naoya Inoue. Goodman camp now pushing for a delay to scheduled Christmas Eve battle in Tokyo. Goodman was set to fly out tomorrow #InoueGoodman pic.twitter.com/cdq6UpIMI8
— Ben Damon (@ben_damon) December 14, 2024
Whereas that reduce isn’t, like, large or something, it’s undoubtedly sufficient that you simply wouldn’t go right into a battle towards Naoya Inoue in 11 days sporting it, particularly while you’re a compulsory challenger and can get your shot finally. It’s simply not value risking, you’re already up towards it as an enormous underdog towards Inoue.
If Goodman (19-0, 8 KO) does get the postponement count on, it stays to be seen if Inoue (28-0, 25 KO) will nonetheless battle in 11 days. In concept, if there’s somebody inside one of many prime 15s in any of the sanctioning our bodies shut sufficient to on-weight and keen to step in, Inoue shouldn’t even have that a lot hassle discovering an opponent, and it’s an general robust card in Tokyo, too, with Yoshiki Takei additionally defending his WBO bantamweight title, amongst different bouts.
There’s, for what it’s value, a Japanese tremendous bantamweight title battle set for the cardboard between Toshiki Shimomachi (19-1-3, 12 KO) and Misaki Hirano (11-1, 4 KO), and Shimomachi may be doable to step as much as the principle occasion. He’s ranked No. 8 on the earth by BoxRec, which doesn’t imply the world or something, however isn’t nothing.
Perhaps value noting that 44-year-old Guillermo Rigondeaux simply fought a month in the past and that solely lasted a minute and 46 seconds. Rigondeaux is understood to remain in fine condition between fights and, properly, he’s Rigondeaux, and he’s 44. Only a thought.
