Undefeated, three-division champion Junto Nakatani is keen to impress when he steps into a new weight division on Saturday. The former bantamweight champion steps up to super bantamweight for the first time when he faces Sebastian Hernandez on the The Ring V: Night of the Samurai card in Riyadh, live on DAZN pay-per-view. The 27 year-old has been heavily linked with a potential fight against Japanese rival Naoya Inoue, who fights Alan Picasso on the same show, but Nakatani wants to see how he feels fighting at 122 pounds first. 

 

Speaking at the grand arrivals for the card, Nakatani said: “I first want to feel that I fit this [weight] class perfectly, so I want to feel as much as possible that I am enjoying this [weight] class. I think this bout is very important, so I want to see that I am fit to feel confident for a bout against Inoue.”

 

Nakatani insists the speculation about a bout with Inoue hasn’t been a distraction for him and he is just focussed on giving a good performance this weekend. He added: “I’m not feeling any pressure at all, I just give 100 per cent and do my best.”