By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unbeaten IBF#9 154-pounder Takeshi Inoue (13-0-1, 7 KOs) acquired the right for IBF #2 when he defeated compatriot #11 Yuki Nonaka (31-10-3, 10 KOs) by a unanimous decision (115-113, 116-113, 116-112) over twelve hard-fought rounds on Thursday in Tokyo, Japan.

OPBF/WBO ASPAC/JBC titleholder Inoue had an upper hand from the outset with his constant pressure and withstood the 40-year-old veteran Nonaka’s last surge in round eleven, scoring an important victory for the IBF #2 in the junior middleweight category.