Junto Nakatani continues to plead his case as a pound-for-pound talent.
The latest display offered by the three-division titlist was a statement-making first-round knockout of the Philippines’ Vincent Astrolabio. A straight left hand to the body put Astrolabio down to end the fight at 2:37 of the first round Saturday at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo.
With the win, Nakatani (28-0, 21 knockouts) lodged the first defense of his WBC bantamweight title.
“I thought this was going to be a long fight,” Nakatani admitted through translator Mizuka Koike. “Luckily I landed that punch early to end the fight.”
It was a fair assumption by the 26-year-old from Kanagawa, Japan. Astrolabio (19-6, 14 KOs) was only stopped once before in his career and is generally built to last.
The visiting Filipino, No. 7 at 118 by The Ring, gave Jason Moloney (27-3, 19 KOs) all he could handle in their WBO title fight last May in Stockton, California. Moloney, No. 6 at 118, won by majority decision, but Astrolabio quickly made his way back to the title picture.
Nakatani won the WBC 118-pound title in a sixth-round knockout of Alexandro Santiago on Feb. 24 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. He immediately became The Ring’s No. 1 rated bantamweight and is also No. 10 pound-for-pound.
At least until the next ratings update.
Nakatani, a 5’8″ southpaw, has caused style fits for opponents through three weight divisions. He used his height and reach advantage to keep the 5’5″ Astrolabio in his desired punching range.
Astrolabio enjoyed brief success with a right hand early in the bout. Nakatani relied on his long jab to fend off his aggressive challenger. He also landed enough left hands to keep him honest and set up his next move.
Then came the sudden ending.
Nakatani positioned Astrolabio near the ropes before he connected with a straight left just above the beltline. Astrolabio paused before he sank to the canvas. Referee Thomas Taylor issued the mandatory eight count and was prepared to allow the bout to continue. That changed once Astrolabio dropped back down to the deck, which prompted an immediate stoppage.
The win advanced Nakatani’s record to 7-0 (6 KOs) in title fights at flyweight, junior bantamweight and bantamweight. Argi Cortes (26-4-2, 10 KOs) is the only boxer to go the distance with Nakatani in a major title fight.
Astrolabio is now 0-2 in major title fights, both coming within his last three fights.
Next on the agenda of the red-hot rising star is a unification bout, which he hopes will be easy to make. All four major bantamweight titlists reside in Japan and represent The Ring’s top four at the weight. Ryosuke Nishida (9-0, 1 KO; No. 2 at 118) holds the IBF belt. Takuma Inoue (20-1, 5 KOs; No. 3) is the WBA titleholder. Yoshiki Takei (9-0, 8 KOs; No. 4) dethroned Moloney in May to win the WBO belt.
In a perfect world, Nakatani would unify versus Nishida to crown a new RING champion. He could also face Inoue before or after that fight, which would set up a dream scenario—a superfight with Naoya Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs), Takuma’s older brother and the RING/undisputed 122-pound champ.
“I would like to unify the titles or move up to [122] to win the championship there,” stated Nakatani. “The fight with [Naoya] Inoue is the one I really want. A lot of people are really expecting this fight. I will continue to get stronger and will be ready for that fight.”
