Notebook: Inoue, Nakatani tease 2026 Tokyo Dome showdown
Bivol-Benavidez update; women's undisputed 130 champ Baumgardner defense added to Taylor-Serrano III card; Quick hits; Show and tell
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Although it won’t happen until at least next year there is hope for an all-Japanese mega fight between undisputed junior featherweight champion Naoya Inoue and WBC bantamweight titlist Junto Nakatani as long as they keep winning. Their showdown would be considered the biggest all-Japanese fight in history.
They both attended this week’s Japanese Boxing Commission’s annual awards gala, where Inoue picked up his seventh consecutive Japanese boxer of the year award. During his acceptance speech, Inoue challenged Nakatani to fight him in 2026.
“Let’s explode Japanese boxing at the Tokyo Dome next year,” Inoue said, according to an interpreter.
Nakatani rose from where he was sitting went over to Inoue, shook his hand, and said, “Let’s do it,” according to the interpreter.