NAOYA INOUE VS YE JOON KIM: DATE, START TIME, FIGHT CARD & MORE

Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku

Naoya Inoue defends his status as the undisputed super bantamweight champion against a game Ye Joon Kim. Who will walk out of Japan holding all the gold? Here’s when the Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim event should start and when the main event fighters should walk to the ring. Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim U.K. start time Date: Friday, January 24 Time: 9:15 a.m. GMT Main event start time (approx.): 12:30 p.m. GMT Location: Ariake Arena — Tokyo, Japan The Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim main card airs at 9:15 a.m. GMT. Inoue and Kim should make their way to the ring around 12:30 p.m. GMT, depending on how long the undercard fights last. Inoue (28-0) was supposed to fight Sam Goodman in December before the latter backed out due to injury. It would have been the third fight of 2024 for Inoue in a year where he decimated Luis Nery and TJ Doheny. Moved to January, Goodman once again had to back out. The four-division champion, 31, believes the additional month to train helped him, as he has fought twice a year since 2021. "It was a real plus for me to get my body into shape over a longer period of time," Inoue told Kyodo News. "I could realize this was the best way to condition myself. I'll give everything I have and fight believing in my 25-year career." Kim (21-2-2) is on a two-fight win streak and 7-0 against fighters from Japan. The 32-year-old South Korean competes in his toughest fight to date and in his first world title fight. As the underdog, "Troublemaker" is ready to cause a massive upset. "It is everything," Kim told The Ring when discussing the opportunity. "This may be the opportunity that brings attention and the spotlight to what I want to achieve to help young aspiring boxers in my country for many years ahead. There have been tough moments, but I have always held onto the hope that my opportunity will come one day. It has now arrived." Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim start time in Japan Inoue vs. Kim starts at 6:15 p.m. local time. The main event should begin around 9:30 p.m. local time, depending on how long the undercard fights last. How to watch Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim in the U.K. Channel/live stream: Sky Sports Fight fans can watch Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim on Sky Sports in the U.K. Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim fight card Naoya Inoue (c) vs. Ye Joon Kim for the IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO, and The Ring super bantamweight titles Goki Kobayashi vs. Yuni Takada; Minimumweights Jin Sasaki vs. Shoki Sakai; Welterweights Tsubasa Narai vs. Kai Watanabe; Lightweights Toshiki Shimomachi vs. Misaki Hirano; Super Bantamweights

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AUGUST 17 WILL BE EXCITING AS DEREVYANCHENKO AND MBILLI FISTS IT OUT IN QUBEC IN A 10 ROUND BOXING MATCH

Centre Videotron, Quebec City, Quebec

Unbeaten, Montreal-based contender Christian “Solide” Mbilli will face three-time world title challenger Sergiy “The Technician” Derevyanchenko in the 10-round main event on Saturday, Aug. 17, at Videotron Centre in Quebec City, Canada. Derevyanchenko (15-5, 10 KOs), a 2008 Olympian for Ukraine, won nearly 400 fights as an amateur. Now a 10-year professional, he fell short in three middleweight title opportunities, including a split decision defeat to Danny Jacobs in 2018 and a razor-thin unanimous decision loss to Gennadiy Golovkin the following year. Derevyanchenko moved up to super middleweight last year and lost to Jaime Munguia in a spirited Fight of the Year candidate. In April, he returned to the win column with a one-sided decision over Vaughn Alexander. Montreal, Canada-based Mbilli (27-0, 23 KOs) brings to the ring his WBC Continental Americas and WBA International belts. The 29-year-old native of Yaounde, Mbilli (27-0, 23 KOs), a 2016 French Olympian, has been on a knockout rampage since turning pro in 2017. He won his first 13 fights via the short route and has maintained his power while stepping up the opposition. Mbilli knocked out former world title challenger Nadjib Mohammedi in 2022 and stopped Demond Nicholson the following year. This fight will be shown live on ESPN+

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LUIS ALBERTO LOPEZ READY TO ANY PEAK AGAINST ANGELO LEO TO DEFEND HIS IBF FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE IN MEXICO

Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Luis Alberto Lopez is ready to make another defence of his IBF featherweight title this weekend in his hometown of Albuquerque in New Mexico. He will be coming up against Angelo Leo, who has beaten four out of his last five opponents. Lopez (30-2, 17 KOs) captured his belt by vanquishing Josh Warrington in his hometown of Leeds, England, in December 2022. He defended the belt by traveling to Belfast, Ireland, less than six months later to defeat hometown hero Michael Conlan via fifth-round stoppage. He then earned a unanimous decision over Joet Gonzalez last September before dispatching mandatory challenger Reiya Abe in eight in March. Leo (24-1, 11 KOs) won a junior featherweight title with a unanimous points win over then-unbeaten Tramaine Williams in August 2020. He lost the title against eventual unified champ Stephen Fulton the following January and has gone 4-0 with two knockouts since. this fight will be live on ESPN +

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VERGIL ORTIZ JR. VOWS TO DOMINATE ONCE AGAIN AS HE FISTS IT OUT WITH SERHII BOHACHUK IN LAS VEGAS

Michelob ULTRA Arena, Las Vegas, NV, US

Vergil Ortiz Jr. is set to be back in action this weekend as he faces Ukraine's Serhii Bohachuk this saturday 10th August at Michelob ULTRA Arena, Las Vegas, NV, US. Ortiz (21-0) has a 100-percent knockout-to-win ratio. A former amateur standout, the 2016 Golden Gloves winner has fought sparingly over the years after suffering from rhabdomyolysis. The former welterweight prospect now looks to make up for lost time by going 3-0 in 2024. Bohachuk (24-1) won the interim super welterweight title against Brian Mendoza in March. The Ukrainian is on a six-fight win streak, winning all but one bout via knockout. This fight will be shown on DAZN

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