Junto Nakatani

Bio

Right then, let me tell you about Junto Nakatani. This Japanese southpaw is undefeated at 30-0, and more importantly, he carries absolutely fearsome power for a bantamweight. Twenty-two of those thirty wins are knockouts—that's elite finishing rate regardless of weight class. The man is a proper puncher.

Make no mistake, Nakatani's accomplished something remarkable: he's held the WBC bantamweight title and moved up to challenge for bigger prizes. What sets him apart is not just the power but the efficiency—he stops several top-level fighters and does so convincingly. Now he's got the biggest challenge of his career lined up: a shot at Naoya Inoue at the Tokyo Dome on May 2. That's the fight that defines him. Inoue's arguably the best pound-for-pound boxer on the planet, and Nakatani stepping up to that challenge with an unblemished record shows the kind of ambition that creates legendary moments. He's got the tools and the power to trouble anyone, but Inoue represents the absolute elite. This is championship boxing at its finest.