JUNTO Nakatani called for a unification with Ryosuke Nishida after securing a third-round stoppage victory over David Cuellar to retain his WBC world bantamweight title.
The pair locked horns at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, with the 27-year-old dispatching his less seasoned opponent in predictably dominant fashion.
Shortly after halting the Mexican, Nakatani, 30-0 (23 KOs), was confronted by fellow unbeaten Japanese titlist Nishida, showing plenty of respect while also eying a potential showdown later this year.
Every fan, of course, is desperate to see the bantamweight king collide with Naoya Inoue, though it would seem that their matchup still has some marinating to do.
In any case, the opening round of this morning’s title fight saw Nakatani come out with a typically measured approach, utilising his long southpaw jab to control the distance.
At the same time, though, the champion stung Cuellar, 28-1 (18 KOs), with his potent left hand early doors, generating plenty of leverage behind the well-timed shot.
In response, the challenger continued to march into range but only found the briefest pockets of success with his less refined attacks.
As Nakatani kept the fight at range, it was not long before he got through with his best punch of the fight, flooring his previously unbeaten opponent with a counter left hook in the third round.
Cuellar, to his credit, swiftly scrambled back to his feet, but was ultimately sent to the canvas once again after Nakatani ruthlessly stepped into range to halt proceedings with an emphatic finish.
In his post-fight interview, ‘Big Bang’ took a moment to show the Mexican a degree of respect before teasing a potential unification with IBF titlist Nishida.
Both champions came face-to-face in the ring, with Nakatani expressing his interest in the possible matchup while Nishida, too, insisted that he would be keen to take on the formidable three-division champion next.
There was, however, no mention of pound-for-pound star Inoue, as while the undisputed super-bantamweight king has been linked with Nakatani for quite some time, it would appear that their potential mouth-watering dustup remains a fair distance away.
