WITH Junto Nakatani hinting at a move up to super-bantamweight just a few weeks ago, it would seem that top contenders Tenshin Nasukawa and Takuma Inoue are set to collide for his WBC world title.
‘Big Bang’ produced a dominant performance to dethrone Ryosuke Nishida in June, adding the IBF strap to his collection of bantamweight jewellery.
But instead of looking to become the undisputed king at 118lbs, Nakatani has revealed that he is likely to vacate his titles and, by moving up a division, take himself one step closer towards a mega fight with Naoya Inoue.
Should his plan come to fruition, it would appear that Nasukawa, 7-0 (2 KOs), the WBC’s number-one ranked contender, is in pole position to land his first world title shot.
The former kickboxing star was previously best known for his exhibition with Floyd Mayweather in 2018, back when he was reduced to tears after finding himself on the receiving end of a first-round finish.
But since then, the 27-year-old has developed into a promising talent at bantamweight, with a unanimous decision victory over Jason Moloney earlier this year, in particular, placing him near the top-end of his division.
Meanwhile, number-two ranked WBC contender Takuma Inoue, the brother of pound-for-pound star Naoya, has equally placed himself in a strong position to challenge for world honours once again.
The 29-year-old lost his WBA strap to Seiya Tsutsumi last October, and despite remaining out of the ring since then, has earned himself a lofty ranking with one of the four major sanctioning bodies.
Following an update to the WBO ratings, however, Inoue, 20-2 (5 KOs), has now lost his sixth-place ranking for the belt that is currently held by Yoshiki Takei.
As a result, it would appear that all paths should lead towards an intriguing clash between Inoue and Nasakawa, whose matchup is expected to materialise as soon as Nakatani vacates his green and gold strap.
