After 12 fast-paced rounds, Goodman (23-1, 8 KOs) simply wouldn't be denied and emerged victorious at Tokyo's Toyota Arena.

The 28-year-old becomes the IBF's interim titleholder at 122 pounds and several possibilities have opened up in a weight class where change appears imminent among the elite.

"He was tough, it was a tough fight, but I thought I broke him down, poured on the pace and did what I thought I'd do to him," Goodman told The Ring.

"Building up to it, I had to be positive early, not leave it too close and felt I won the bulk of the rounds. I was positive from the get-go, looked to dominate ... we always approached it one way: going forward, putting it on him."

Despite the bruising nature of their encounter, Goodman doesn't feel it was the toughest night of his career.

"I probably couldn't say that because I lost to Nick Ball," he said.

"He may have pushed me to places I haven't been in other fights because of the immense fight pace. We didn't stop throwing punches but I knew we needed to, they don't hand out world titles so I had to put it on him."

Goodman fell short when stepping up to featherweight against then-WBA ruler Ball in August 2025. Back in his natural weight class, he's now on a three-fight win streak.

Ring and undisputed champion Naoya Inoue is currently entertaining a Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez super fight, or moving to featherweight. As such, Goodman-Nishida was for interim honors and the younger man's hunger was clear as he wouldn't be denied.

"After missing out the first time, if I failed here, I might not have got another chance," he said.

"It's a big investment from your promoters and people to get you in that position. I knew this was something I had to make sure of, not leaving to chance."

Goodman, who sits top of The Ring's junior featherweight rankings after his decision victory, has enjoyed time off since a marquee win abroad.

"The next few days were pretty low-key, I was just recovering," he said. "Now we're over in Las Vegas having a few fun nights with a few of my close mates, enjoying myself and then getting home."

He's eager to stay stateside and watch a friend feature on the Sebastian Fundora-Ermal Hadribeaj bill come October 17.

"Hopefully we get to watch Koen Mazoudier fight Jermall Charlo, but I'll see how funds are going first. I'd love to be able to support him."

After a welcome break, the eight-year veteran will return to the fold and assess his options.

When asked about what he wants next: "At the moment you'd have to say Inoue, but I've got to see how the division plays out. If that opportunity gets presented, 100 percent I'm jumping at it."