JUNTO Nakatani made a huge statement in Tokyo, blasting away Vincent Astrolabio in double-quick time. Astrolabio was not unbeatable, but nobody had dealt with him like this.
As the clock for the opening round ticked down, the Kanagawa man landed a thumping straight left to the body that left the usually durable Filipino writhing in agony. He barely beat referee Thomas Taylor’s count before slumping back to his knees, confirming the finish.
Nakatani (28-0, 21 KOs) explained afterwards that he was expecting a longer outing but found the correct shot to finish matters early. He humbly apologised to the crowd for not giving suitable value for money against Astrolabio (19-5, 14 KOs).
Many would argue he offered exactly what the boxing world wanted to see. Making the first defence of a title he took from Alex Santiago in February, the fearsome champion wants to unify the titles next or move up, depending on what options present.
Nakatani namechecked Naoya Inoue, stating that he would get stronger and be ready. Fight fans are certainly ready for such a spectacle. “I will take one step at a time but I know up one division the ‘Monster’ is waiting for me,” he added.
Naoya and Takuma Inoue (Naoki Fukuda)
Earlier on the card, Anthony Olascuaga picked up the vacant WBO flyweight title with a third-round blast of Riku Kano. Main eventer Nakatani later invited stablemate Olascuaga into the ring to celebrate.
The ever-improving Tenshin Nasukawa bludgeoned Puerto Rican Jonathan Rodriguez in round three.
Kosei Tanaka’s WBC super-flyweight title defence against Mexico’s Jonathan Rodriguez was canned when the challenger came in significantly overweight.
