Cardenas Assesses Inoue-Nakatani After Dropping Monster

Ramon Cardenas wanted a spot on Saturday's Tokyo Dome card but will watch Naoya Inoue defend his undisputed junior featherweight titles against Junto Nakatani from San Antonio instead. The Ring's No. 5-rated 122-pounder knows both men intimately — he dropped Inoue in the second round of their May 2024 bout before losing in round eight, and he banked 99 documented sparring rounds with Nakatani in camp last December.

Cardenas told The Ring he logged those sessions at half-speed, working craft over violence, but pushed Nakatani hard enough to simulate the pressure Sebastian Hernandez would bring. Hernandez gave Nakatani trouble over twelve rounds in Riyadh, just as Cardenas had stretched Inoue deeper than expected. "I would say we were sparring at about 50 percent of our abilities," Cardenas said of the Nakatani work. "We weren't trying to kill each other, but I did try to push him and make it rough and tough on him."

Why Cardenas Calls It 50-50

Cardenas sees Saturday's clash as competitive because both fighters adjust under fire. Nakatani stays composed when hurt and uses his reach to dictate range; Inoue controls pace and knows when to shift gears. "When I fought Inoue, I said going in that I had to be perfect for 36 minutes," Cardenas explained. "But for Junto, I feel that it could be a 50-50 fight." He doubts Nakatani will land the overhand left that floored Inoue in their bout — Inoue has drilled defence against southpaw counters ever since — and he doubts Inoue can stop Nakatani if Hernandez could not.

The Mexican-American contender credits both men for meeting in their primes rather than preserving zeroes. "It's not about being undefeated; that's bogus," he said. "These two Japanese warriors are setting the example, and everyone loves you for that." Cardenas stopped short of picking a winner, citing respect for both and his own ambitions to fight them again, but offered one prediction: "Boxing will win."

DAZN streams the Inoue-Nakatani card worldwide starting at 5:40 a.m. ET Saturday. Cardenas returned to the ring in December with a fifth-round knockout of Erik Robles Ayala and remains in the title picture at 122 pounds.

Source: ringmagazine.com