Boxing promoter Bob Arum has been around the sport of boxing for quite some time.
A legend of the sport, Arum has been respsonsible for making some of the most important fights of all time. This includes the likes of Marvin Hagler vs Thomas Hearns, and Evander Holyfield vs George Foreman.
Currently 93 years of age, Arum has seen some of the very best of all time compete in the flesh. However, he made a surprising claim in terms of the greatest fighter he had ever seen.
Bob Arum names Naoya Inoue as the greatest fighter he has ever seen
Arum has seen the likes of Muhammad Ali, Floyd Mayweather, and many others compete over the years, as he has truly witnessed the best of the best. However, neither man is considered by Arum to be the best he has ever seen.
Instead, Arum went for active superstar Naoya Inoue. The Japanese champion has been a true pound-for-pound star in recent years and has over 10 years of experience as a world title holder.
The ‘Monster’ Inoue currently boasts a 29-0 record, with 26 of those wins coming by way of knockout.
When asked about the fighter by Jai McAllister, Arum said, “Inoue is not only pound-for-pound best in the world, Inoue is the best fighter I’ve ever seen.”
“I have never, ever, in the almost 60 years I’ve been in boxing, seen anything like Inoue.”
Naoya Inoue has been an undisputed champion in two weight divisions
Inoue has certainly established himself as one of the greatest fighters of the 21st century. From Inoue winning his first world title fight by knockout, to having an almost 90% stoppage rate, he is a true talent.
As well as possessing an incredible amount of power, Inoue is one of the few undisputed world champions in the four-belt era.
Not only has he become an undisputed world champion, but he has done so in two weight classes. Holding all four belts in bantamweight and super bantamweight in his career, he is one of three men to accomplish the feat.
Terence Crawford became an undisputed super lightweight champion in 2017, before repeating the accomplishment at welterweight in 2023.
The third and most recent man to fully unify two divisions is Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian unified the cruiserweight division in 2018 before becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion in 2024.