Naoya Inoue, ESPN's No. 3 pound-for-pound boxer, will help usher in the 2025 title fight slate with his third defense of the undisputed 122-pound championship early Friday in Tokyo (ESPN+, 4:15 a.m. ET).

Here's all you need to know ahead of Naoya Inoue's undisputed junior featherweight title defense against late replacement Ye Joon Kim on Friday.

Korean challenger Ye Joon Kim is a huge underdog as he steps in as a late replacement to take on the pound-for-pound phenomenon Naoya Inoue.

Japanese fighter Naoya Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) is considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world and on Friday, January 24, he will headline the first major card

The new year has a growing number of events set for the first few months. Many of the sport's biggest names already have fights on the 2025 calendar, including several members of the pound-for-pound elite.

Local fighters look to impress in Japan on the Naoya Inoue vs. Ye Joon Kim undercard. Here's a breakdown of all the action on the Inoue vs. Kim card.

Over time, Naoya Inoue's fights have turned into must-see bouts that the "Monster" often turns into additions of his already-electric highlight reel.

The bout will mark the third undisputed title defense for Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs). In May 2024, the 31-year-old knocked out Luis Nery with 50,000-plus in attendance at a sold-out Tokyo Dome. Inoue then retained his four 122-pound belts in September with a seventh-round TKO of TJ Doheny.

Naoya Inoue is set to defend his undisputed world titles again this week, as Ye Joon Kim steps in for the injured Sam Goodman. Inoue, a four-division champion who has been undisputed at two weights, was due to box Goodman in December – in the Japanese superstar’s third defence of his super-bantamweight belts.