Japanese boxing champion Naoya Inoue prepares to defend titles against Junto Nakatani at Tokyo Dome
The four-weight world champion faces a new test against a fellow Japanese contender in a bout expected to highlight the unique challenges of facing Inoue's precision and power.
Four-weight world champion and two-division undisputed king Naoya Inoue is scheduled to defend his super-bantamweight titles against compatriot and three-division champion Junto Nakatani at the Tokyo Dome. Known as 'the Monster', Inoue enters the bout with a record of 32 wins, having stopped opponents 27 times and securing 27 consecutive world title victories.
Former opponents Paul Butler and Jason Moloney have described the physical sensation of fighting Inoue as feeling like an electric shock due to the speed, accuracy, and power of his punches. Despite Inoue standing at 5ft 5in and weighing less than 9st, both fighters noted that his legs appeared massive after the weigh-in, bellying his small stature with a massive impact in the ring.
Butler, a two-time world bantamweight champion, recalled looking at Inoue's calves during a face-to-face after the weigh-in, remarking on the size of the fighter's legs. He noted that while Inoue struggled with the weight cut, the Japanese boxer seemed to grow larger once inside the ring, moving opponents where he wanted them to go with blistering speed.
Moloney recounted being hit flush on the chin in round eight, leaving him unable to feel his legs for the remainder of the fight. He explained that the danger lies not in one-shot knockout force, but in the ability to throw short, precise shots without telegraphing power, noting that Inoue does not show he is loading up before delivering a shot with bad intentions.
Inoue turned 33 last month, yet his skills show little sign of waning as he continues to collect titles. Previous attempts to exploit Inoue's difficulty with weight cuts, such as when Moloney faced him in 2020, did not result in fatigue for the Japanese champion during the fight.
Butler suggested that if Inoue moves up to featherweight, his smaller size might become a disadvantage against larger opponents, though he conceded that skill-wise, power, and presence remain Inoue's strongest attributes. The upcoming contest against Nakatani is expected to be an exciting test of whether the challenger can neutralise Inoue's unique fighting style.
