Who are the current bantamweight champions?

Paul Butler and Naoya Inoue. (Images courtesy of @1paulbutler01 and @naoyainoue_410 Instagram)
Paul Butler and Naoya Inoue. (Images courtesy of @1paulbutler01 and @naoyainoue_410 Instagram)

Bantamweight star Naoya Inoue impressed boxing fans and pundits when he scored a brutal and decisive second-round stoppage of Nonito Donaire in their rematch at the Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on Tuesday.

The emphatic win allowed 'The Monster' to collect Donaire's WBC Bantamweight Title and add it to his WBA, IBF and The Ring belts. He is now one strap short of becoming the Undisputed Champion at 118 pounds.

The Japanese star first collected the IBF and The Ring Titles in May 2019, when he defeated Emmanuel Rodriguez via second-round knockout in the semifinals of the 2018-2019 World Boxing Super Series for the bantamweight division. Six months later, he won the WBA belt in the finals against Donaire by way of a 12-round unanimous decision.

The lone belt that currently does not belong to the 29-year-old is the WBO strap, which is under the care of Paul Butler.

Butler, known as 'Baby Faced Assassin', was elevated to full championship status in May this year after the WBO belt stripped Filipino champion John Riel Casimero. This was due to his failing to defend his title twice against the English fighter, who was the mandatory challenger at the time.

As it stands, there are now only two fighters in possession of the four major world championships and The Ring belt in the bantamweight class: Inoue and Butler. With that, it is safe to assume that a fight between the two for the undisputed crown is very much on the horizon.


Naoya Inoue, Paul Butler both eyeing Undisputed Bantamweight Title

After taking Donaire's bantamweight title, Naoya Inoue has made it clear that he is going for all the belts in the 118-pound division. In his post-fight interview, he said:

"My aim is to be the Undisputed Champion. If I can do that within this year of 2022, I would love to stay in this division but if I can’t, I am capable of raising my division and fighting again in the higher division."

For his part, Butler also expressed eagerness to face the Japanese unified champion. He told DAZN:

"Undisputed is everything to him, and he can't do that without me. I'm desperate for the fight and I'm going to go over there and give it everything I've got because that's what it's going to take to beat a fighter like Inoue."

Inoue is still young and very much in the prime of his career. The next logical step for him is to fight Butler for all the belts. Meanwhile, the 33-year-old Butler will definitely grab the opportunity to prove that he belongs to the higher echelons of boxing stardom.

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Edited by John Cunningham
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