A five-bout boxing event at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena will showcase the highly anticipated Inoue vs. Doheny match. Naoya Inoue, a pound-for-pound boxing sensation, will defend his IBF, WBC, and WBO super bantamweight titles against former champion TJ Doheny in a 12-round contest.

Inoue, an undefeated 31-year-old Japanese fighter with a record of 27 wins (24 by knockout), is widely regarded as one of boxing’s elite talents. His last bout in May saw him successfully defend his titles with a sixth-round knockout victory over Luis Nery. Inoue has achieved the remarkable feat of becoming a champion in four weight divisions and made history as the first boxer in the modern era to unify all super bantamweight titles. He’s also one of only three male boxers in the four-belt era to become an undisputed champion in two separate weight classes.

His challenger, 37-year-old Irish boxer TJ Doheny, boasts a record of 26 wins (20 by knockout) and 4 losses. Doheny, a former IBF super bantamweight titleholder, has faced inconsistent results since losing his championship in 2019, going 5-4 in his subsequent nine fights. However, he’s recently found his form again, stringing together three consecutive victories over Kazuki Nakajima, Japhethlee Llamido, and Bryl Bayogos in the past 15 months.

Naoya Inoue vs TJ Doheny fight date, start time, ring walks

The two-fight main card headlined by Naoya Inoue vs. TJ Doheny will begin on ESPN+ at 4:45 a.m. (CT) on the morning of Tuesday, Sep. 3. The Inoue vs. Doheny ring walks are expected to begin at approximately 5:30 a.m. (CT).

• Fight card start: 4:45 a.m. CT
• Inoue vs. Doheny ring walks: approx. 5:30 a.m. CT
• Pre ESPN+ main card:
  Ismael Barroso (25-4-2, 23 KOs) vs. Andy Hiraoka (23-0, 18 KOs)
  Jin Sasaki (17-1-1, 16 KOs) vs. Qamil Balla (15-1-1, 8 KOs)
  Toshiki Shimomachi (18-1-3, 12 KOs) vs. Ryuya Tsugawa (13-1, 9 KOs)

By Vincent Quezada

Photos courtesy of Top Rank Boxing and Getty Images