Japanese WBC bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani has distinguished himself as the best 118-pounder in the world after coming through the first defense of his title with a knockout (KO) win over Filipino challenger Vincent Astrolabio. With the three other world titles in the division held by other Japanese champions, the time appears ripe for Nakatani to start his road towards undisputed and stake a top 5 position spot on the pound-for-pound rankings (P4P). Nakatani and Astrolabio headlined a Teiken Promotions show on Saturday, July 20th, at the Kokukigan Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
Junto Nakatani (28-0, 21 KO’s)’s match with Vincent Astrolabio (19-5, 10 KO’s) concerned the first title defense Nakatani would make since he captured the WBC bantamweight (118 lbs) title earlier this year in February.
While already considered the favorite for his July 20th match against Vincent Astrolabio, Junto Nakatani set himself apart from the other 118 lbs champions as he stormed to a knockout victory in the closing 30 seconds of the first round after planting a crunching left cross to the body from the southpaw stance. Prior to that, Astrolabio had already been sharply outboxed but the body shot incapacitated him definitively, dropping him to the ground and leaving him unable to continue. As a result, Nakatani was announced the winner by knockout in the first round.
The undercard bouts of the Teiken Promotions card similarly saw results occur much earlier than expected.
At flyweight (112 lbs) Japanese contender Riku Kano (22-5-2, 11 KO’s) and American contender Anthony Olascuaga (7-1, 5 KO’s) vied over the vacant WBO 112-pounds title―previously held by American champion Jesse Rodriguez (20-0, 13 KO’s) before his [successful] move up to the super flyweight (115 lbs) division.
Winning at least the first two rounds through relentless pressure and an adequate inside game, Olascuaga defeated Kano in front of a home crowd after a powerful left uppercut [from the orthodox stance] dropped Kano in the third round, resulting in him being counted out and Olascuaga declared the winner to become the new WBO flyweight champion.
At super bantamweight (122 lbs), Japanese former kickboxing champion Tenshin Nasukawa (4-0, 2 KO’s) managed to build on his growing pro boxing career with his fourth career victory over American contender Jonathan Rodriguez (17-3-1, 7 KO’s), stopping him in the 3rd round to claim a victory by technical knockout (TKO).
The quick and decisive victory over a high-ranked contender in Vincent Astrolabio has confirmed Junto Nakatani as likely the best bantamweight in the world. Currently, the 118 lbs division recognizes four Japanese world champions in total, but Nakatani’s latest performance has set him apart from the rest and signals the need for a unification bout for the WBC champion―both to foster competitiveness in the division and to give Nakatani an opportunity to cement his current position in the pound-for-pound rankings.
On the business side of things, a fight with WBA bantamweight champion Takuma Inoue (20-1, 5 KO’s), younger brother of Naoya Inoue (27-0, 24 KO’s), appears most feasible as both fighters are signed to Teiken Promotions. However, in lieu of Nakatani’s recent performances at 118 lbs, it is unlikely Inoue or any of the other champions will clamor for a Nakatani fight.
