Undefeated WBA Featherweight World Champion Nick Ball (22-0-1, 13 KO) is reportedly set to clash with former Naoya Inoue rival Luis Nery (36-2, 28 KO) on August 16th.
The bout, first reported by Franco Zorzini, is expected to take place on the undercard of a potential showdown between American rivals Devin Haney and Teofimo Lopez, pending a finalised agreement between the two.
The unbeaten Liverpudlian will be making the third defense of his crown, having captured the WBA featherweight title in June 2024 with a hard-fought split decision win over American Ray Ford in Saudi Arabia.
Ball was one of five Queensberry fighters who dominated their Matchroom opponents that night to seize promotional bragging rights. Since then, he has successfully defended his title twice on home soil in Liverpool.
His first defense came via a tenth-round stoppage of seasoned American Ronny Rios, followed by a win over Irish-born Australian TJ Doheny, who retired in the tenth round due to a back injury.
Nick Ball To Face Fighter Who Dropped ‘The Monster’
Luis Nery is a formidable force in the boxing world, having suffered just two defeats in 38 professional bouts, both at the hands of elite-level opponents.
Having previously campaigned at bantamweight and super-bantamweight, this bout marks Nery’s second outing at featherweight as he looks to claim world championship gold for a third time.
The two-weight world champion faced the toughest test of his career in May 2024, stepping into the ring with ‘The Monster’ Naoya Inoue in a high-stakes undisputed super-bantamweight title clash.
Despite suffering a sixth-round stoppage defeat at the hands of one of boxing’s biggest stars, Nery made history by becoming the first man to drop the pound-for-pound great when they met at the Tokyo Dome.
The 30-year-old rebounded from the loss in February with a seventh-round stoppage victory over Japanese featherweight Kyonosuke Kameda in Tijuana, Mexico.
A victory for Nick Ball could set the stage for a potential future showdown with Inoue, placing him among the growing list of challengers eager to dethrone the seemingly invincible champion.
