“That’s a fantastic fight. I feel like whoever lands the primary big punch will turn into the winner,” Rodriguez said to Boxing News.
The skepticism surrounding Junto Nakatani is at an all-time high following his 122-pound debut against Sebastian Hernandez in December. He was outlanded 179 to 155 in the ultimate six rounds and looked physically “human” for the primary time.
Moving to super bantamweight appeared to rob Nakatani of the fluid, giant-among-men movement he had at 118. He was a stationary goal for Hernandez’s body attack.
Hernandez showed that when you bully Nakatani and force him right into a phone booth, he abandons his height advantage and tries to out-muscle people, which plays right into Naoya Inoue’s hands.
When Bam says “whoever lands first wins,” he’s likely taking a look at Nakatani’s specific anatomical benefits quite than his recent form. Even on a foul night, Nakatani has that eraser power. His punches are whipping and long. If Inoue gets reckless attempting to close the gap, he could walk right into a shot he never sees.
Inoue is extremely technical and fast, but Nakatani is a natural southpaw who knows easy methods to use his lead hand to blind opponents.
If Nakatani fights the best way he did in December, flat-footed and willing to trade, Inoue will likely stop him inside six rounds.
Inoue, 33, is arguably the most effective body puncher in boxing, and Hernandez already provided the roadmap for easy methods to tenderize Nakatani’s midsection.
Bam is giving Nakatani the puncher’s likelihood respect, but unless Nakatani was just having a foul night or battling a one-time weight acclimation issue, he looks a step behind “The Monster” in every technical category.