Junto Nakatani praises fighter and welcomes showdown – and it’s not Naoya Inoue

On December 27, at the Mohammed Abdo Arena, Riyadh, Junto Nakatani (31-0, 24 KOs) will make his debut at super bantamweight, facing Sebastian Hernandez (20-0, 18 KOs), in the co-main event to Naoya Inoue vs Alan David Picasso. Arriving in Riyadh, Nakatani gave his assessment of Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez’s win over Fernando Martinez and his willingness to fight the American in the future.

Junto Nakatani welcomes fight against ‘Bam’ Rodriguez

Rodriguez’s trainer, Robert Garcia, recently revealed that ‘Bam’ was offered a fight against Nakatani and accepted, with the Japanese star saying no because he wanted to move to super bantamweight:

“Before the Fernando Martinez fight, we were offered the Nakatani fight. Nobody mentioned Martinez until I was told that Nakatani decided not fight Bam because he was going to move up in weight. Bam and I had agreed to the fight, and the money, to fight Nakatani by the end of year.

“But a couple of days later I was told by Mr. Akihiko Honda that Nakatani was not going to fight Bam because he was going to move up to 122. And then we were offered Martinez instead. So, it’s not like we don’t want to fight Nakatani. Eventually, we are going to meet him. It’s a huge fight. It’s a great fight. I think it will be an explosive fight. 

“I’ve seen Nakatani. I think Bam is much smarter, technical, and I think Bam can beat him. I can’t promise a knockout like Rudy because Nakatani is a great fighter and a bigger man. Bam will beat him, but it won’t be easy,” said Garcia.

Junto Nakatani vs Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez

Talking to Fight Hub TV, Nakatani was asked about his assessment of Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez’s win over Fernando Martinez, to add the WBA super flyweight title to his WBC, WBO, and The Ring Magazine titles:

“From what I saw, he has great timing and moves a lot. I feel he’s a very active fighter,” said Nakatani.

When asked if he would like to fight Rodriguez one day, a smiling Nakatani said: “Yes.”

Whether we see Nakatani vs ‘Bam’ remains to be seen, but should Nakatani and Inoue win on December 27, a fight between the two looks most likely for 2026. Could this all work out and Rodriguez face the winner of Inoue vs. “Big Bang?”