It’s quite hard to believe that we fight fans had not even heard of Turki Alalshikh a couple of years ago, what with the Saudi billionaire now known everywhere for putting his deep pockets to use in staging huge fight cards, with some of the biggest names from the sport appearing. Now, as per multiple news reports, Alalshikh has managed to get Japanese superstar, and reigning (in the opinion of many people) pound-for-pound star Naoya Inoue’s signature on a contract.
Inoue has been photographed alongside Alalshikh, and it has been reported that the current unified super bantamweight champ has signed a deal that will see him compete in Riyadh Season, the deal worth close to $20 million.
“Inoue is the best and strongest boxer of all time,” Alalshikh said in an official statement. “He has a keen interest in Japan and the Japanese market. I hope he will become a good and important ambassador for Saudi Arabia and the Riyadh Season.”
It is not yet known if Inoue will box in Saudi Arabia or if Alalshikh will stage some big fight cards featuring Inoue in Japan. Alalshikh, as we know, has put on big shows in the UK as well as in the US. Not too many details regarding the terms of Inoue’s deal have been released as of yet, and as we know, Inoue will next face IBF mandatory challenger Sam Goodman in Japan on December 24th.
After that, assuming Inoue gets the win, who knows what Alalshikh has in mind for “The Monster?” Inoue himself has stated that he is open to the idea of fighting in Saudi Arabia, although his promoter Bob Arum has said he plans to have Inoue return to the US to fight next year in Las Vegas.
“I think it’s all about timing,” Inoue said. “This year’s fight [against Goodman] has been decided. I don’t know what will happen next year. If I can fight in Saudi Arabia, I’ll just live up to those expectations. I think I’ll just perform the way I do in Japan.”
Currently 28-0(25), four-weight champion Inoue has thus far boxed in Japan, in California in the US, in Vegas in the US, and in Glasgow, Scotland. But it could be that the 31-year-old star takes his amazing show on the road to Riyadh next year. How many more star fighters will Alalshikh work with before he’s done?
