The outcome of the 14 September duel between Naoya “Monster” Inoue and Murodjon Akhmadaliev of Uzbekistan will determine how the super-bantamweight division will play out in the remainder of 2025.
Inoue is defending all four belts of the major sanctioning bodies in Nagoya and among those closely watching what’s going to happen are leading contenders Marlon Tapales and Carl Jammes Martin.
Sean Gibbons of MP Promotions and Knucklehead Boxing insists the two Filipino contenders are on the brink of fighting for world titles the moment a vacancy takes place.
Tapales is rated No. 2 by the World Boxing Council (WBC) behind toprated David Picasso of Mexico. He is also ranked No. 3 by the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and No. 4 by the World Boxing Organization (WBO).
Martin, meanwhile, is ranked No. 1 by the WBO and No. 7 by the IBF.
If Inoue repulses Akhmadaliev and decides to move up in weight, then Tapales and Martin are going to be picked to play pivotal roles in the search for a new champion.
“Right now, all we have to do is weight for 14 September,” said Gibbons, who also has another Filipino in the rankings.
Former world champion is also in the mix as he is also listed at No. 6 by the IBF, No. 9 by the WBC and No. 6 by the WBO.
There are talks that Inoue will fight one last time at 122 pounds and face fellow Japanese pound-for-pound entrant Junto Nakatani before the year draws to a close.
But while talks continue to persist, no formal announcement has been made about the mouthwatering matchup involving the Japanese stars.
While waiting for the call to fight, Tapales and the unbeaten Martin are neck-deep in training.
Tapales is helping out Inoue in sparring for Akhmadaliev, whom Tapales beat to become a two-belt champion in 2023.
Akhmadaliev is a southpaw like Tapales, who eventually surrendered the two straps — World Boxing Association and IBF titles — to Inoue in December 2023 in Tokyo.
Martin is in Las Vegas.