Nick Ball is targeting unifications over a likely clash with pound-for-pound star Naoya Inoue.

Ball successfully defended his WBA featherweight title on Saturday with a 10-round beatdown of Irish veteran TJ Doheny. The fight was seen as an opportunity to build a contest with Ball and Inoue, as Doheny had created a big following in Japan due to winning his title there in 2018, and picking up some big knockout wins. Doheny was also coming off a defeat to Inoue in September.

A clash between Ball and Inoue now looks to have moved closer, with talks of the bout landing in Saudi Arabia in December. Ball, however, is not focussing on Inoue until it is confirmed the pound-for-pounder will be moving up to 126lbs.

“UK, Saudi, wherever they want it, Japan, America, wherever,” Ball told BoxingScene. “I don't care, wherever it is. But the main thing is when he comes to my weight, he's not even my weight yet. So when he moves up to my weight, I'll be ready and waiting for him.

“Get the belts first,” he continued. “I'm speaking about a man that is not even in my weight. He's at super bantamweight. So when he’s in my weight, obviously we'll speak about it, but for now, I'm focused on the other belts. What I want, I want to become undisputed. So get them belts and then if he moves up, he moves up.”

The featherweight division has four champions, all of which have a claim to be the best at 126lbs. Ball feels he should be a unified champion after he was denied the WBC title following a controversial draw against Rey Vargas in 2024. The current holder of the famous green-and-gold belt is Stephen Fulton, who defeated Brandon Figueroa for the title last month. 

A unification with Fulton would be Ball’s ideal pick for a unification.

“I like the… well, I don't like it, it should be my belt, the green and gold one, WBC,” Ball said. “I think Fulton's got that. So that'd be a good fight to make and be involved in. I'd like that.”

One champion who has been vocal about a contest with Ball is WBO titleholder Rafael Espinoza, who at 6ft 1in is the tallest featherweight champion in history. Ball, on the other hand, stands at 5ft 2ins, a stark contrast to the towering Espinoza.

“Yeah, I need a pair of stilts first and then I'll get in there with him,” Ball joked about a potential contest. “But nah, that'd be an interesting fight, yeah. I think it'd be a good one to make as well because he's that tall and I'm that small. So everyone would be like, ‘Wow, what's going to happen here?’ But smaller guys are harder to hit. So it'd play out in my favour, I think. So we'll just have to wait and see.”

“Everyone thinks like I just come forward,” he continued. “I can fight. I can be in and out. I've got fast feet. I can jab, out-jab people. I can out-jab 6ft people, I've shown it. So yeah, things like that and just me training and listening to [coach] Paul [Stevenson], all the drills that we do in the gym. Yeah, and always believing in yourself.”