Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs) is the undisputed 122-pound champion and is waiting for Rodriguez (24-0, 17 KOs) to announce his move to the junior featherweight division.

Rodriguez made his 118-pound debut in June and appears inclined for another fight in the weight class against IBF beltholder Christian "Chispa" Medina this winter. But Rodriguez's promoter Eddie Hearn told The Ring last week that those plans can be nixed if the Inoue fight becomes a real possibility.

Inoue met with the media in Japan on Monday to offer his stance on the "inevitable" super fight, all while teasing a long-planned move to featherweight.

"It's not like I'm particularly attached to Bam," Inoue said, per Sanspo. "If Bam says he wants to continue fighting in the bantamweight division for a while longer, then I'm already thinking about challenging for the featherweight division. But if it can be done around February, then I'll do it. However, if it gets pushed back even further than that, then there's no need for me to be so attached to Bam, and I'm not attached to him anyway. I'll go my own way.

"Frankly speaking, I can still do 122 pounds in terms of weight, but if it comes down to featherweight, it would definitely mean pushing myself to move up. If Bam wants to do it, then I'll wait.

"It all depends on Bam's movements now. If it does happen, I'll have to be cautious, because I'll only be overestimating Bam … In the end, my body size is about the same as Bam's. I won't know how that will affect the result until we actually fight. But if I fight Bam, I'll be fired up."

Inoue is rated No. 1 in The Ring's pound-for-pound list, and Rodriguez is ranked fourth.

Inoue last fought in May against Japanese countryman Junto Nakatani in defense of his undisputed 122-pound title, winning by unanimous decision.

Rodriguez scored a sixth-round stoppage against Antonio Vargas for the WBA title in June.