In a highly anticipated technical battle that captivated the global boxing community, undisputed champion Naoya Inoue (Ohashi) secured a unanimous decision victory over Junto Nakatani (M.T) to retain his super-bantamweight world titles. The bout served as the main event at the Tokyo Dome on the night of the 2nd. The judges’ scores were 116-112, 116-112, and 115-113.
中谷との高度な激闘を制した井上㊨
Following the introduction by ring announcer Michael Buffer, Nakatani was the first to enter the ring before a crowd of 55,000. Inoue followed, accompanied by a live performance by guitarist Tomoyasu Hotei. After the national anthem was performed by singer Fumiya Fujii, the opening bell sounded.
The bout commenced with an intense battle of feints. Nakatani utilised his superior reach with right jabs, while Inoue countered with low-aimed left jabs to the body. Both men demonstrated exceptional defensive movement to evade return shots, creating a high-tension opening that drew immediate roars from the audience.
The technical stalemate continued at an elite level, with Inoue constantly feinting with his upper body while Nakatani used his lead hand like a probe to disrupt the champion’s rhythm. In the fourth, Nakatani looked to land sharp left straights but missed the mark. Inoue began to increase his output, working behind the jab to set up short right hooks. In the fifth, Nakatani landed a glancing left straight, and in the sixth, he found success with his straight left from distance. Inoue, however, remained patient, consistently jabbing to close the range. As Inoue surged late in the round, Nakatani responded with a right uppercut.
Inoue intensified his offensive in the seventh, landing a clean right straight that appeared to be the most impactful blow of the fight to that point. The action escalated in the eighth as both men stood their ground. Nakatani refused to retreat, unleashing heavy combinations including a menacing right hook following his left.
Despite the intensity, both fighters appeared to relish the technical exchange; Nakatani was seen smiling after Inoue masterfully evaded a sequence of punches. In the ninth, Inoue displayed superb defensive skills to slip Nakatani’s unorthodox shots. An accidental clash of heads in the tenth caused a cut on the left side of Nakatani’s brow.
While Nakatani edged the tenth, Inoue mounted a comeback in the eleventh. He used uppercuts to force Nakatani into a high guard and followed up with a right-hand-led assault that forced the challenger to use his feet. The final round began to thunderous applause, with both men trading their primary weapons—the straight—until the final bell. Upon the conclusion, the two embraced in a show of mutual respect as a standing ovation swept through the stadium.
Winner Inoue remarked: “I executed a performance to show that I would be the one winning tonight. He is a fighter with immense heart. Because he is a PFP-ranked fighter, there is great value in this victory.” He then addressed the capacity crowd, saying, “I will return to this Tokyo Dome, so please show me this view again,” to thunderous applause. The champion added, “After a short rest, I want to sit down with Ohashi-kaicho and my father to consider future opponents and our next steps.”
Inoue improves his record to 33-0, 27 KOs. Nakatani, suffering his first professional defeat, moves to 32-1, 24 KOs.
