Naoki
Inoue will meet Yuki Motoya
in a rematch — this time with the bantamweight title at stake — at
Rizin 50.
The bout was announced during
Rizin 49 “Decade” after Motoya earned his championship
opportunity with a unanimous decision victory over Kyoma
Akimoto at Saitama Super Arena on New Year’s Eve. Rizin
50 takes place on March 30 at Anabuki Arena Kagawa in Kagawa,
Japan.
Inoue initially bested Motoya via first-round submission at Rizin
26 in December 2020. The 27-year-old Kill Cliff FC representative
is coming off a 2-0 campaign in 2024 that saw him claim the vacant
135-pound throne with a first-round stoppage of Soo Chul
Kim at Rizin 48.
The 35-year-old Motoya went 3-0 in 2024, adding submission triumphs
over Shinobu Ota
and Sho
Hiramatsu to the aforementioned victory against Akimoto. The
American Top Team product has competed under the Rizin banner
periodically since 2015, often alternating those appearances with
fights for the Deep organization.