Inoue’s Mastery and Nakatani’s Resolve Define Riyadh Fight Night

Naoya “the Monster” Inoue did not deliver the knockout but electrified the crowd with his speed and masterful skill over Mexico’s David Picasso in winning a convincing unanimous decision win to retain the undisputed super bantam championship on early Saturday.

“I’m very happy I can win,” said Inoue.

In front of a large crowd in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Japan’s Inoue (32-0, 27 KOs) pummeled Picasso (32-1-1, 17 KOs) round after round to the body and head but could not produce the knockout desired at the Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh.

You can blame that on Picasso’s durability.

Despite rapid fire attacks by Inoue throughout the 12-round featherweight match, Picasso absorbed every blow to the head and especially to the body. Inoue blasted the body with impunity.

“I thought my performance was not good enough,” said Inoue, who had an 11-fight knockout streak before winning his last fight and this fight by decision.

Part of the reason for the dissatisfaction by Inoue was the inability to knock out or knock down the taller and younger Mexican fighter from Colima.

Picasso had a height and reach advantage but his wide stance and crouch gave up those strengths as Inoue used his speed and agility to dart in and out of range while firing speedy combinations to the head and body.

Inoue always seemed poised like a cobra to find an opening and deliver.

Picasso, however, could take a punch even from the Monster.

One major strength of the Mexican fighter was his left jab that found the mark repeatedly. But anything else in his arsenal could not put a dent on the Japanese fighter considered one of the top three fighters pound-for-pound in boxing.

Inoue blasted speedy combinations as if out for a stroll. Despite Picasso’s tight defense Inoue’s blasts to the body began to force the Mexican fighter to lower his guard and create more distance.

Inoue’s agility was no match for Picasso’s youth and height.

The Japanese fighter who has won world titles in four weight divisions began to take more chances in hopes of getting a knockout. Picasso connected often with left hooks but Inoue shrugged off those blows with a slight smirk and countered with blistering combinations.

The crowd seemed hypnotized by Inoue’s boxing mastery.

Inoue must have been surprised at Picasso’s resilience. He repeatedly bounced rights on the side of the Mexican’s head and mId-way through the match he lowered his sights to the body. Blow after blow punished Picasso’s torso but the Mexican did not submit to the onslaught.

The Japanese great was not content with a decision win and repeatedly opened up with vicious and precise attacks. The Mexican fighter fought back but was out-matched by Inoue’s boxing abilities.

After 12 rounds all three judges saw Inoue the winner 120-108, 119-109, 117-111.

“I want to do better next time,” said Inoue.

Many fans in Japan and worldwide hope Inoue and Nakatani will meet each other in a battle between Japan’s two best fighters.

Nakatani Outbattles Hernandez

Junto Nakatani (32-0, 24 KOs) needed every tool in his war chest to pull out a victory by unanimous decision against Mexico’s hard-charging Sebastian Hernandez (20-1, 18 KOs) to maintain his place in line for the super bantamweight world title.

Hernandez, 25, never stopped punching once he turned on the engine.

Fighting out of his southpaw stance, the Japanese fighter who trains in Los Angeles has become familiar with the Mexican style over the years, and he needed every ounce of that experience to maneuver his way to victory.

Hernandez stalked Nakatani in the first three rounds with very few punches. Nakatani blasted away at the tight guard of the Mexican fighter with uppercuts and more uppercuts. Though many landed none seemed to affect the Tijuana fighter.

In the fourth round, Hernandez opened up his attack perhaps knowing he could withstand the Japanese fighter’s power shots.

Nakatani was the master of the exchanges at long range, but once the distance was erased Hernandez began to hammer away with a nonstop supply of power shots up and down that Nakatani could not match. A bruised right eye emerged on the Japanese fighter and the swelling got worse as the fight ensued.

During the last third of the match Nakatani began to use angles and his toes to move in and out of range while snapping long jabs and an occasional uppercut and overhand left. Hernandez never stopped firing back but was not effective at long range.

In the ninth round Hernandez found his rhythm and range as he rained blow after blow on Nakatani’s head and body. Though many connected Nakatani’s ability to absorb a good shot enabled him to not be overrun. Still, the fight was too close to allow Hernandez the momentum and the Japanese fighter kept moving and countering.

Though the Mexican fighter had rained many blows, he didn’t seem to be tiring and Nakatani realized that fighting inside was not the answer. He used his jab to maintain distance and fired bullet lefts to the body and head. Hernandez demonstrated repeatedly that he could not be hurt by Nakatani who moved up a weight division from bantamweight.

In the last three rounds Nakatani used movement and angles to score. Hernandez preferred fighting at close range and almost never used a jab. Meanwhile, Nakatani scored with the jab and combinations.

Hernandez showed an incredible engine and when the Japanese fighter slowed in the eleventh round, the Mexican fighter reeled off seven punch salvos and a 10-punch barrage as Nakatani conserved energy.

In the final round Nakatani’s right eye was visibly swollen and Hernandez also exhibited a smaller swelling on his left eye. Both had expended hundreds of blows but realized the match could go either way with the judges. The final round was fought at close quarters as Nakatani smothered Hernandez’s punches and used jabs to score when possible. Hernandez fired away never worrying about Nakatani’s power.

After 12 rounds two judges scored it 115-113 and a third judge saw it 118-110 all for Nakatani.

“It was a tough match. Hernandez was a really great fighter,” said Nakatani. “It was a great opportunity for me to grow.”

When asked about a showdown with “Monster” Inoue, he was very giving with an answer.

“Of course. I changed my weight class to prepare for the golden champion,” said Nakatani about a possible showdown with Inoue in 2026.

Other Bouts

Dominican Republic’s Eridson Garcia (23-1, 14 KOs) out-fought Japan’s Taiga Imanaga (9-1, 5 KOs) to win by split decision after 10 rounds in a lightweight match.

Japan’s Reito Tsutsumi (4-0, 3 KOs) won by knockout in the third round over Mexico’s Leobardo Quintana (12-2, 5 KOs) in their super featherweight battle.

A scheduled world title fight was canceled when Mexico’s Willibaldo Garcia (23-6-2) was unable to defend the IBF super fly world title against Japan’s Kenshiro Teraji (25-2) due to a stomach ailment.

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