Fulton vs Inoue

Who won Fulton vs Inoue?

Naoya Inoue beat Stephen Fulton by technical knockout in the 8th round on Tuesday, July 25th, 2023, at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Super Bantamweight division, which meant the weight limit was 122 pounds (8.7 stone or 55.3 kg).

This contest was for the unified super bantamweight championship of the world, with the WBC, and WBO belts on the line.

Inoue was making his 4th defense of the The Ring Junior Featherweight Championship. He won this belt against Marlon Tapales in December 2023. He had held this belt for 1 year, 4 months and 26 days.

He was also making his 6th defense of the WBO World Junior Featherweight Championship. He won this belt against Stephen Fulton in July 2023. He had held this title for 1 year, 9 months and 27 days.

Also, on the line was his 5th defense of the IBF World Junior Featherweight Championship. He won this belt against Marlon Tapales in December 2023. He had been recognised as this champion for 1 year, 4 months and 26 days.

In addition, he was making his 6th defense of the WBC World Super Bantamweight Championship. He won this belt against Stephen Fulton in July 2023. He had been WBC champion for 1 year, 9 months and 27 days.

Finally, he was making his 5th defense of the WBA Super World Super Bantamweight Championship. He won this belt against Marlon Tapales in December 2023. He had been WBA champion for 1 year, 4 months and 26 days.

Also on the undercard Robeisy Ramirez beat Satoshi Shimizu for the WBO World Featherweight championship, and Ronnie Baldonado was overcome by Yoshiki Takei.

Fulton vs Inoue stats

Back in July 2023, Stephen Fulton stepped into the ring with an undefeated record of 21 wins, zero losses, and 0 draws.

Naoya Inoue made his way to the ring with an unblemished record of 24 wins and 0 draws.

Stephen Fulton was the younger man by 2 years, at 29 years old.

Fulton had a height advantage of 2 inches over Inoue. Despite this, Inoue had a 1-inch reach advantage.

Both Stephen Fulton and Naoya Inoue fought out of an orthodox stance.

Fulton was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 3 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2014, 2 years later than Inoue, whose first professional fight was in 2012. He had fought 8 fewer professional rounds, totaling 173 compared to Inoue's 181.

Naoya Inoue was ranked number 1 by the WBC, and 1 by the WBO in the 122lb division.

Fulton vs Inoue form

Fulton had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 1 of them, going the distance 4 times.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Daniel Roman on June 4, 2022, by unanimous decision in their WBC World Super Bantamweight and WBO World Junior Featherweight championship fight at Armory, Minnesota, United States.

Prior to that, he had defeated Brandon Figueroa on November 27, 2021, by majority decision in their WBC World Super Bantamweight and WBO World Junior Featherweight championship fight at Park Theater, Nevada.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Angelo Leo on January 23, 2021, by unanimous decision in their WBO World Junior Featherweight championship fight at Mohegan Sun Casino, Connecticut.

Before that, he had won against Arnold Khegai on January 25, 2020, by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Barclays Center, New York.

He had beaten Isaac Avelar on August 24, 2019, by knockout in the 6th round at Bert Ogden Arena, Texas.

Naoya Inoue remained undefeated as a professional, stopping 5 of his last opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had defeated Paul Butler on December 13, 2022, by knockout in the 11th round in their The Ring Bantamweight, WBO World Bantamweight, IBF World Bantamweight and WBC World Bantamweight championship fight at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.

Prior to that, he had defeated Nonito Donaire on June 7, 2022, by technical knockout in the 2nd round in their WBC World Bantamweight, WBA Super World Bantamweight and IBF World Bantamweight championship fight at Super Arena, Saitama.

Going into that contest, he had won against Aran Dipaen on December 14, 2021, by technical knockout in the 8th round in their WBA Super World Bantamweight and IBF World Bantamweight championship fight at Kokugikan, Tokyo.

Before that, he had defeated Michael Dasmarinas on June 19, 2021, by knockout in the 3rd round in their WBA Super World Bantamweight and IBF World Bantamweight championship fight at Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas, United States.

He had beaten Jason Moloney on October 31, 2020, by technical knockout in the 7th round in their WBA Super World Bantamweight, IBF World Bantamweight and The Ring Bantamweight championship fight at The Bubble, MGM Grand, Nevada.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Naoya Inoue had been fighting more than Stephen Fulton.

Going into this contest, Stephen Fulton had last fought 1 year, 1 month and 21 days ago, while Naoya Inoue's last outing had been 7 months and 12 days ago.

Fulton's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 11 months and 1 day, which means he had been fighting approximately every 9 months and 13 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 54 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 10.8 rounds on average.

Inoue's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 8 months and 24 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 6 months and 18 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 31 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 6.2 rounds on average.

What time did Fulton vs Inoue start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 11:45 AM UTC at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku, Japan, which was 7:45 AM EST or 4:45 AM PST on the West Coast of America, or 12:45 PM BST in the UK.

Who broadcast Fulton vs Inoue?

The ESPN+ show began at 4:30 AM EST / 1:30 AM PST. The Sky Sports Action broadcast of the card started at 9:30 AM (BST).

What were the odds on Fulton vs Inoue?

Stephen Fulton was a 10/3 (+340) underdog going into the contest, while Naoya Inoue made his way into the ring at 2/9 (-450) with oddsmakers.