"Inoue -- ESPN's No. 2 pound-for-pound boxer -- is coming off an impressive 2025 where he competed four times with wins over Kim Ye-Joon, Ramon Cardenas, Murodjon Akhmadliev and David Picasso. Inoue's unanimous decision win over Picasso in December also saw Nakatani in the co-main event squeezing by Sebastian Hernandez in a tougher-than-expected fight."
"Nakatani is ranked No. 6 on ESPN's pound-for-pound rankings and will look to become a four-division champion after holding world titles at bantamweight, junior bantamweight and flyweight. Although he narrowly won his junior featherweight debut in a grueling showdown with Hernandez, Nakatani has proven to be one of the best fighters in the world and had a strong showing in 2025 by going 3-0."
Naoya Inoue and Junto Nakatani will compete for Inoue's undisputed junior featherweight championship on May 2 at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. Inoue, ranked No. 2 pound-for-pound by ESPN, enters with a perfect 32-0 record and 27 knockouts, coming off an active 2025 with four victories. Nakatani, ranked No. 6 pound-for-pound, holds a 32-0 record with 24 knockouts and seeks to become a four-division champion after previously holding titles at bantamweight, junior bantamweight, and flyweight. The undercard includes Inoue's younger brother Takuma defending his WBC bantamweight title against Kazuto Ioka. The fight will broadcast on Lemino pay-per-view in Japan.
Read at ESPN.com
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