Naoya Inoue survives early knockdown to stop Ramon Cardenas in eighth round, retain undisputed title

'The Monster' got caught with a brutal shot before unleashing some nasty punches of his own

Naoya Inoue's first fight on American soil since 2021 resulted in a successful defense of his undisputed junior featherweight championship against Ramon Cardenas, though the fight was full of unexpected drama. Inoue, who entered as a massive favorite, was dropped by a perfect Cardenas hook in the second round and had to navigate some choppy waters before finally breaking Cardenas down to score an eighth round TKO.

Cardenas, knowing he would have to earn Inoue's respect early, tried to get off to a strong start by showing a quick jab that he landed several times. Without power coming behind Cardenas' jab, Inoue continued in his standard mode of firing his own jab to set up whipping right hands. That culminated in a heavy straight right connecting for Inoue at the end of the opening frame.

Cardenas then flipped the entire fight in the second round. After showing more aggression and forcing Inoue backward early in the round, Cardenas took advantage of Inoue's attempt to return the aggression and landed a left hook counter, dropping Inoue to the canvas in a shocking moment.