Inoue Dominated While Nakatani Dug Deep on Riyadh’s Night
Naoya Inoue retained his undisputed super bantamweight championship and Junto Nakatani survived a demanding divisional debut at Ring V: Night of the Samurai on December 27, 2025. Both Japanese stars won twelve-round decisions at Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Inoue’s speed and precision kept Picasso behind
Inoue defeated Alan David Picasso by unanimous decision, with scores of 120–108, 119–109 and 117–111. His combinations and body work repeatedly prevented the Mexican challenger from establishing sustained control.
The champion improved to 32–0 and completed his fourth victory of 2025. Picasso suffered his first defeat after remaining competitive enough to reach the final bell against an opponent who controlled most of the action.
Nakatani’s first super bantamweight assignment became a hard fight
Sebastian Hernandez pressured Nakatani throughout the twelve rounds, forcing lengthy exchanges on the inside. Nakatani’s early movement, reach and uppercuts helped establish the position he later had to defend.
Two judges scored it 115–113 for Nakatani, while the third returned 118–110. The unbeaten Japanese fighter finished with a swollen right eye but preserved his record at 32–0.
Two supporting results completed the four-bout program
Eridson Garcia defeated Taiga Imanaga by split decision over ten rounds. The scores were 96–93 and 95–94 for Garcia, with the remaining judge favoring Imanaga 95–94.
Reito Tsutsumi stopped Leobardo Quintana Sanchez at 1:14 of the fourth. The night ended with contrasting Japanese headliners: Inoue’s wide championship defense and Nakatani’s much closer success against Hernandez.
Sources
- WBO: undisputed title defense and official scorecards
- WBC: Nakatani’s divisional debut and twelve-round battle
- FIGHTMAG: full card, venue and official results
