LOS ANGELES – The respect is deep. The intention to achieve victory is fiercer.
As the days dwindle leading up to the most massive bout ever to be staged in Japan, waged between two of the country’s most accomplished champions, the cultural knack to keep things simple and humble can effectively be reduced to the above sentences.
Naoya Inoue is hailed by Junto Nakatani trainer Rudy Hernandez as the world’s best fighter and the top Japanese boxer of all time. But after guiding the younger, taller and rising Nakatani through his training camp here, Hernandez made clear two things can be true at once.
“It’s one thing to respect the fighter, but when the bell rings, we’re going to go in there and try to knock his head off,” Hernandez said. “We can’t settle for anything less than winning. Winning, to us, means everything.”
A sellout crowd of 55,000 is expected at the Tokyo Dome on May 2 when four-division champion and mythical pound-for-pound king Inoue, 32-0 (27 KOs), meets three-division champion Nakatani, 32-0 (24 KOs), for the undisputed junior featherweight championship on DAZN.
On Monday, the left-handed Nakatani, 28, worked through a series of movements and rapid positioning and punching drills all aimed to penetrate the shield and complicate the bout for the older Inoue, 33, who has been knocked down in two of his past six bouts.
“The advantage [Nakatani] has is his height and reach, and the fact he’s a little younger,” Hernandez said. “Other than that, it’s about who’s going to land first, who’s the quicker of the two, and who’s going to be able to better take the punches.”
Nakatani demonstrated complete control during his positioning drills, flashing a smile to Hernandez during the sequence as if to confirm full readiness for the bout as they prepare to leave L.A. for Tokyo on Friday.
“I’m very much looking forward to it, and I believe I can deliver a performance that will satisfy all 55,000 spectators,” Nakatani told BoxingScene after his workout.
“I believe boxing is a sport that can move people’s hearts deeply, and for me, there’s a significant meaning to that.”
Nakatani has trained with Hernandez in Los Angeles since the age of 14, fulfilling the veteran cornerman’s lifelong ambition to guide a young amateur all the way to a million-dollar purse, which Nakatani accomplished in December by defeating Mexico’s Sebastian Hernandez in a surprisingly competitive bout in Saudi…
2026-04-15 08:00:00
Inside Junto Nakatani’s planned takedown of Naoya Inoue
