Naoya Inoue defeated Junto Nakatani by unanimous decision at the Tokyo Dome on Saturday, handing his compatriot the first professional loss of his career. The victory retained Inoue's undisputed super-bantamweight titles and preserved his unbeaten record.
Both fighters entered the bout with perfect records, but it was Inoue, 33, who extended his legacy with scorecards of 116-112, 115-113, and 116-112. Inoue (33-0, 27 KOs) has now won world titles at light-flyweight, super-flyweight, bantamweight, and super-bantamweight.
Nakatani, 28, had previously won gold at flyweight and super-flyweight before becoming unified bantamweight champion. He moved up to super-bantamweight in December. Despite a strong second half where he outlanded Inoue from rounds eight to ten, he could not overcome the 'Monster'.
Inoue has been linked to a future fight with Jesse 'Bam' Rodriguez, the unbeaten two-weight champion. Inoue expressed interest but indicated he would take a break before his next bout. Rodriguez would need to move up significantly in weight for such a contest.
