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Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso live updates, results, highlights as pound-for-pound star tops Ring V: Night of the Samurai card

Dom Farrell

Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso live updates, results, highlights as pound-for-pound star tops Ring V: Night of the Samurai card image

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Pound-for-pound superstar Naoya Inoue is the main attraction on the Ring V: Night of the Samurai fight card in Riyadh.

Inoue (31-0, 27 KOs) makes the sixth defence of his undisputed super bantamweight against undefeated Mexican Alan Picasso (32-0-1, 17 KOs).

It will be 'The Monster's fourth outing of 2025 — a superb level of activity for an elite championship fighter in the modern era — but there is also intrigue over what might lie ahead.

Compatriot Junto Nakatani (31-0, 24 KOs), a former three-weight world champion, steps into Inoue's division for the first time when he takes on Sebastian Hernandez in the chief support.

If Inoue and Nakatani come through unscathed, the plan is for them to meet in a superfight at Tokyo Dome next May.

There are Japanese fighters in every contest on the card, although Kenshiro Teraji will not challenge Willibaldo Garcia for the IBF super flyweight title after the champion was taken ill following Friday's ceremonial weigh-in. Teraji was aiming to become a three-weight world champion.

AllSportsPeople is providing live coverage and results from the Inoue vs. Picasso card and round-by-round coverage of the main event.

Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso results

  • Naoya Inoue (c) vs. Alan Picasso for the WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and Ring super bantamweight titles
  • Junto Nakatani vs. Sebastian Hernandez; Super Bantamweights
  • Taiga Imanaga vs. Eridson Garcia; Lightweights
  • Reito Tsutsumi vs. Leobardo Quintana; Super Bantamweights

Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso live fight updates, highlights from 2025 boxing card

10 a.m. GMT/ 5 a.m. ET: Our first preliminary fight of this reduced card will be underway shortly when rising star Reito Tsutsumi takes on Leobardo Quintana over six super bantamweight rounds. It will be Tsutsumi's fourth outing as a professional, having turned over this year.  There are high hopes for the 23-year-old Tsutsumi, a former youth amateur standout who has been named as a Ring ambassador.

9:30 a.m. GMT/ 4:30 a.m. ET: Our world title action today has been trimmed after IBF super flyweight champion Willibaldo Garcia was taken ill following the ceremonial weigh-in for his clash with Kenshiro Teraji and declared medically unfit to fight. There was brief talk of securing a late replacement for Teraji, but the limited time to work with means those attempts have come to nought. Teraji was aiming to become a three-weight world champion, and losing a title fight at the 11th hour was a further blow to the card after Hayato Tsutsumi withdrew from his challenge to WBA super featherweight champion James 'Jazza' Dickens with a facial injury.

Kenshiro Teraji with the unified belt

時事

9 a.m. GMT/ 4 a.m. ET: Hello and welcome to AllSportsPeople' live coverage of Naoya Inoue's sixth defence of his undisputed super bantamweight title against Mexico's Alan Picasso. Inoue vs. Picasso tops the Ring V: Night of the Samurai card in Riyadh, with fellow Japanese superstars Junto Nakatani and Kenshiro Teraji also in action.

Naoya Inoue Defend Undisputed title 01242025

Jiji Press

Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso start time

  • Start time: 4 a.m. ET | 1 a.m. PT | 9 a.m. GMT
  • Main event start time (approx.): 7:55 a.m. ET | 4:55 a.m. PT | 12:55 p.m. GMT
  • Location: Mohammed Abdo Arena — Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

The Inoue vs. Picasso fight is at Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on December 27. The event starts at around midday local time, a start time to align with prime time viewing in Japan, where Inoue, Nakatani and Teraji all have huge followings.

Japan Standard time is six hours ahead of Riyadh. The timings of GMT, ET and PT are noted above.

How to watch Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso

  • StreamDAZN
  • PPV Price: $59.99 | £24.99 | $49.99 (AU)

Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso will be available on DAZN worldwide.

The PPV price is $69.99 in the US and Canada and £19.99 in the UK. Alternatively, fans can sign up to the new DAZN Ultimate subscription tier, which costs £22.99 per month for the first 12 months for fans in the UK and $44.99 monthly in the US and includes a minimum of 12 pay-per-view events every year at no extra cost.

The standalone PPV for Ring V: Night of the Samurai comes with a free seven-day DAZN trial.

DAZN monthly subscription is $19.99 on a 12-month contract or $29.99 month-to-month. The annual subscription is $224.99. In the UK, this subscription costs £9.99 on a 12-month contract or £19.99 month-to-month.

Contributing Writer