Naoya Inoue vs. TJ Doheny ends in anticlimactic knockout due to Doheny injury

Naoya Inoue kept his finishing streak intact, though probably not in the manner he was hoping.

The Japanese boxing star successfully defended his undisputed super bantamweight status Saturday at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, scoring a seventh-round stoppage of challenger TJ Doheny (26-5, 20 KOs) after Doheny pulled up with an injury early in the frame.

It’s unclear exactly what happened to Doheny, though it appeared that his back stiffened up, which prompted the stoppage.

Watch the anticlimactic finish below.

With the win, Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) retained his WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring belts at 122 pounds.

“Monster” was just starting to get going in the sixth round after 15 minutes of action that he mostly commanded. Doheny’s movement slowed Inoue’s usual aggressiveness and the veteran’s tricky southpaw style led to moments of success, but overall it was Inoue consistently coming forward and landing the harder shots.

It was in Round 6 that Inoue’s body work appeared to pay off as Doheny’s defenses began to crumble. A trademark Inoue finishing flourish seemed to be just around the corner, but the end came in unsatisfying fashion just seconds into the next round due to Doheny’s injury. The official time of the stoppage was 0:16 of Round 7.

Inoue has now won nine straight title fights via stoppage.