The World Boxing Organization’s third-ranked super flyweight Francisco Rodriguez Jr of Mexico and his entourage arrived in Japan on Oct. 25 for a super flyweight nontitle fight with undefeated WBO flyweight champion Junto Nakatani of M.T Boxing Gym on Nov. 1 in Saitama Prefecture.

The scheduled 10-rounder at Saitama Super Arena in the prefecture will serve as one of the undercards for the world light flyweight title unification match between World Boxing Council champion Kenshiro Teraji of B.M.B. Boxing Gym and World Boxing Association ‘’super’’ champion Hiroto Kyoguchi of Watanabe Boxing Gym.

The following are a summary of his statement compiled by the event organizer:

Question: Tell us about your condition and feelings about the coming fight.
Answer: My present condition is excellent. I am highly motivated for the fight.

Q: Where did you do your training camp to prepare for the fight? How many rounds of sparring sessions have you done so far?
A: I have been concentrating on this fight for eight weeks. I ran on the coast of Puerto Vallarta in the Jalisco state (central Mexico). I then engaged myself in the practical training in Monterrey (northeastern Mexico). I have so far done 80 to 90 rounds of sparring to prepare for my southpaw opponent.

Q: What sort of fight do you think you can have with Nakatani? What do you think would be a crucial punch or punches?
A: I think I can cope with Mr. Nakatani’s speed and his left punches by making the most of my technique.

Q: What kind of impact do you think your fight with Nakatani will have?
A: If I can win the coming fight, I think that will be the shortest way to take a crack at a world title. I will fight as if it were a world title match. I want to get my revenge on Mr. (Kazuto) Ioka (of Shisei Boxing Gym). (He dropped a relatively close 12-round decision to WBO super flyweight champion Ioka in September last year).

Q: What kind of fight do you want to show to Japanese fans?
A: I want to show an impressive fight so that the Japanese fans can remember me (the fight) eternally. I believe the fight (with Nakatani) will prove to be that kind of fight.
The 24-year-old Nakatani has 23 straight wins, including 18 KOs, while the 30-year-old Rodriguez Jr has a 36-5-1 win-loss-draw tally with 25 KOs.
Photo by Teiken Boxing Gym