Junto Nakatani made a successful first defence of his WBC bantamweight title – and a significant statement – by stopping Vincent Astrolabio in the opening round.
On paper, it looked like Nakatani, 28-0 (21 KOs), would be given a few rounds’ work by the Filipino but the three-weight world champion had an easy night.
Astrolabi, 19-5 (14 KOs), outpointed an old Guillermo Rigondeaux in 2022 and pushed the talented Jason Maloney before losing a majority decision in a vacant WBO title fight in May 2023. He had absolutely no answer for Nakatani, however, and was stopped by a single left hand to the pit of the stomach in the very first round.
The Japanese southpaw barely needed to get out of first gear. While the strong looking Astrolabio took the centre of the ring and kept a tight, high guard, the rangy Nakatani skirted around the ring, probing with his jab and letting his left hand go occasionally.
With the round drawing to a close, he threw a jab towards Astroabio’s head, the Filipino, 27, raised his guard to block it – and Nakatani fired in a straight left to the mid-section. it was a simple trap, executed perfectly.
Astrolabio dropped to his knees and though he tried to get to his feet, he quickly dropped back to the canvas. The time of the stoppage was recorded at two minutes and 37 seconds of the very first round.
Nakatani, 26, remains undefeated and though some will question he quality of the opposition, the way that he dealt with Astrolabio solidified his reputation as one of the best fighters in the world.
Tenshin Nasukawa, 4-0 (2 KO) is best known for quickly losing an exhibition to Floyd Mayweather Jr in 2018 but the 25 year-old is intent on changing the perception that exists of him.
Nasukawa was a phenomenal kickboxer who is also undefeated in MMA. He is increasingly focused on establishing himself as a top-level super bantamweight and took a big step up in competition against Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Rodriguez, 17-3-1 (7 KOs), who stopped Britain’s former super flyweight champion Kal Yafai in 2023 and is ranked at number four by the WBA.
Aware that he couldn’t match Nasukawa for speed and not wanting to over commit and leave gaps for the colourful Japanese fighter to exploit, Rodriguez felt his way into the fight. Nasukawa was content to take his time and he feinted, edged backwards and looked to counter with his southpaw left hand.
Suddenly, as the second round drew to a close, Nasukawa exploded. He stepped into a left hand that landed cleanly on Rodriguez’s chin. his legs stiffened, and the ball sounded as he sagged into the the ropes.
Nasukawa capitalised on his success in the third. When the moment presented itself, the 25 year old landed another left hand that hurt Rodriguez and he followed it up with hard, accurate shots to head and body to drop the Puerto Rican. Rodriguez got to his feel and looked capable of continuing but the referee Michael Someya decided to stop the fight. The official time was one minute and 49 seconds of the third round.
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