Ronspo, though Yahoo! Japan, brings word of some interesting developments on the Japanese front. Per their update yesterday, U-NEXT’s as-yet unannounced NYE show will feature four-division champion Kazuto Ioka, former flyweight champion Daigo Higa, and reigning WBA light flyweight champion Daiya Kira, who will move up to 112 in a bid to become a two-weight champion in just his sixth pro fight.
Arguably more interesting is the second half of the article, which claims that DAZN will air pound-for-pound
fixture Junto Nakatani’s (32-1, 24 KO) planned return in February. “Big Bang” has been on the mend since a brutal war with Naoya Inoue in May, but now finds himself well-positioned to take “The Monster’s” place as the super bantamweight division’s kingpin upon Inoue’s planned journey to 126.
Per Ronspo, he’ll first have to get past Ramon Cardenas (28-2, 15 KO), who himself floored Inoue in a firefight for the ages last year. He and Nakatani own the top two spots in the WBC rankings and would reportedly square off for either an interim title or, if Inoue vacates ahead of time, the real thing. Regardless of the hardware at stake, there’s a ton to love about a matchup between indefatigable sluggers, and DAZN expanding into the Japanese market should make things significantly more convenient for the Americans with awful sleep schedules who otherwise have to navigate a fragmented broadcast scene.
