By Joe Koizumi
Unbeaten Japanese southpaw Junto Nakatani (23-0, 18 KOs), 111.75, impressively kept his WBO flyweight belt as he pummeled compatriot WBO#2 Ryota Yamauchi (8-2, 7 KOs), 112, into submission at 2:20 of the eighth round on Saturday in Saitama, Japan. Nakatani, unusually tall as a flyweight standing 5’7”, fully utilized his advantageous height and reach, lopsidedly battered the shorter challenger at will and finally halted him with an unanswered combination midway in the fatal eighth. The 24-year-old Junto, making his second defense, showed his improvement in fighting in the close quarter, but may outgrow the 112-pound category soon because of his reported difficulty to make weight. The ref was Katsuhiko Nakamura who made a well-timed stoppage to save the swollen-eyed loser from further punishment.
Promoter: Teiken Promotions.
Nakatani is a star. Martinez & Edwards will get that attention and may even unify, but Nakatani might end up being the best flyweight in the world.
I was extremely impressed with Nakatani’s speedy demolition of Angel Acosta and was looking forward to this fight. It took a little longer this time, but he was able to demonstrate his versatile boxing skills and defense while flashing the power he showed against Acosta. I do believe he’s the best flyweight in the world right now. I’d like to see him against Chocolatito in the future. He’s got all the tools to beat Roman when he does move up to the 115 lb division.