Murodjon Akhmadaliev entered his most recent bout determined to get straight to the point in the ring.

Immediately after his third-round knockout of Ricardo Espinoza, he didn't waste any time to call out The Ring/undisputed 122-pound champion Naoya Inoue. That was the opponent whom the former unified WBA/IBF titlist already expected to fight this year, and for whom fully intends to be next in line.

He and his team now what answers for why The Ring No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter isn't held to the same standard as other champions.

"If Inoue doesn’t want to fight me, he needs to explain why," insisted Akhmadaliev immediately after his win this past Saturday in Monte Carlo, Monaco. "When I was champion, I followed the rules. He should follow the rules as well. I had mandatories and made them without any discussion.

"I need [an] explanation because I am here and ready for the fight."

Uzbekistan's Akhmadaliev (13-1, 10 KOs) is The Ring No. 2 junior featherweight contender. Inoue (28-0, 25 KOs) holds The Ring championship and all four divisional titles at the weight.

Additional ammunition was secured by Akhmadaliev, who claimed the interim WBA 122-pound title. He was already the mandatory challenger to Inoue's full version of the belt.

The bout was twice ordered by the WBA and even sent to a purse bid at one point. However, the sanctioning body granted exceptions to Inoue to instead face TJ Doheny in a voluntary defense and now IBF mandatory Sam Goodman (19-0, 8 KOs).

Inoue defeated Doheny (26-5, 20 KOs), The Ring No. 7 junior featherweight contender, via seventh-round technical knockout on Sept. 3 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo.

He was due to face Goodman at the same venue on Dec. 24. The event was postponed by a month when Goodman, The Ring No. 3 contender, suffered a cut over his left eye during his final day of sparring.

More worrisome to Akhmadaliev and Matchroom Boxing are the openly-discussed plans for Inoue to fight next spring in Las Vegas. Akhmadaliev's name was not mentioned in those plans or for any other targeted bout in 2025.

A stand was officially taken on the side of the mandatory challenger.

"We've delivered them the [Inoue-Akhmadaliev] fight," noted Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn. "It's not been called once, it's been called twice by the WBA. The first time they paid for an exception to duck MJ. The second time was cast iron in writing. They found a way to avoid him again.

"Naoya Inoue is a legend in the sport, we have to respect him. But there's one thing he hasn't got—and that's Uzbek power. There is only one fighter in the division that can even compete with him... this man will beat [Inoue]."

A victory of sorts was provided by the WBA, who ruled during its convention that the Inoue-Goodman winner will be ordered to next face Akhmadaliev.

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