‘There’s the Monster Waiting’: Junto Nakatani Talks Possible Next Opponents

On Saturday, July 20, at the Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan, Junto Nakatani (28-0, 21 KOs) dominated Vincent Astrolabio (19-5, 14 KOs), stopping him in the first round to retain his WBC bantamweight crown in the main event of the Teiken Promotions card. It was shown live on ESPN+ for those in the United States, while those in the UK watched on Sky Sports Action. Following his impressive stoppage win, Nakatani spoke on what could come next for the undefeated star.

Junto Nakatani Defeats Vincent Astrolabio

Junto Nakatani Discusses Possible Future Moves

The first round began with both fighters stalking each other before Nakatani stepped forward and landed a straight right to the body of Astrolabio. The shot seemed to take all the breath out of the Filipino fighter, leaving him breathless on the canvas, unable to beat the count.

Read More: Junto Nakatani Brutally Knocks Out Andrew Moloney

In the post-fight interview when reflecting on the punch that ended the bout: “I thought maybe this was going to be a long fight but luckily I got the punch and I am victorious.”

Turning to the crowd after the fight, Nakatani said: “Do you want me to unify the titles? I’m thinking about unifying the titles in the bantamweight division or I’m thinking about going up weight divisions, let’s see.”

Possible Future Opponents

The Inabe-gun native spoke on the possibility of fighting the WBA titlist Takuma Inoue next and said: “I think loads of people are expecting this fight. I’ll be stronger, I’ll get ready.”

Read More: Takuma Inoue and Seigo Yuri Akui Defend World Titles in Decision Wins

Many in the boxing world are dreaming about Nakatani going up one more weight division and taking on the fearsome Naoya Inoue, who is the undisputed world champion in the super-bantamweight division: “I will take one step at a time but I know in one of the weight divisions there’s the ‘Monster’ waiting. So let’s see what happens,” Nakatani said.