Former boxing champion Koki Inoue recently opened up about his deep affection for anime and manga during an interview with Chanto. After a brief hiatus from boxing in 2020, Inoue surprisingly shifted his career to become a professional manga artist. He revealed that his 2022 comeback to the sport was partly inspired by the anime film Bang Dream! Poppin’Dream!, which hit theaters that year.
Inoue began his boxing career in 2015, swiftly rising through the ranks undefeated and securing the WBO Asia Pacific light-welterweight championship in December 2019. He has always been vocal about his love for otaku culture, often using anime theme songs as his entrance music before matches.
Following a loss that ended his winning streak in 2020, Inoue decided to take a break from boxing to pursue his passion for drawing. He self-published an autobiographical manga titled Fight! Kouki-kun on his Twitter (now X) account, eventually releasing it as a physical book. The title’s concept was suggested by Kou Nakamura, the novelist and original creator of the Bang Dream! multimedia franchise, whom Inoue admired and later met in person.
While encouragement from friends and family, including his four-time world champion cousin Naoya, played a role in his decision to return to boxing, Inoue credits the aforementioned Bang Dream film as the ultimate catalyst. He attended a screening of the film at a Shinjuku theater with his editor. “The film’s tagline was ‘SAVE the Dream,’ and it conveyed the importance of holding onto your dreams. After the movie, as we discussed it, I felt an overwhelming surge of emotion, like my heart had been pierced, and tears streamed down my face. I was reminded of how vital it is to pursue your own dreams, and my body tingled with excitement. In that instant, I resolved to give boxing another chance.”
Motivated by this inspiration, Inoue eagerly called his cousin Naoya to share his decision to return to the ring. Although Naoya was initially exasperated that an anime film had swayed his cousin more effectively than he had, he was ultimately delighted by the news.
Despite suffering another defeat against Daishi Nagata—the same boxer who led him to retirement in 2020—Inoue has chosen to continue his boxing career, now competing in the welterweight division. He attributes his perseverance to the support he receives. “Whether in boxing or anime, it’s that same ‘support’ that drives me to keep pushing forward,” he said.