Japan Rising: Naoya “Monster” Inoue vs Junto “Big Bang” Nakatani
A mega fight takes place this Saturday May 2, when two of Japan’s greatest fighters Naoya “Monster” Inoue (32-0, 27 Kos) and Junto “Big Bang” Nakatani (32-0, 24 Kos) clash at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo. DAZN pay-per-view will stream the Teiken Promotions and Top Rank Promotions extravaganza.
Inoue, 33, the undisputed bantamweight champion, has been the target of Nakatani for a couple of years now. They finally meet on Saturday and Japan and the boxing world are riveted.
For American fans, they will have to wake up at 5 a.m. on the Pacific Coast to watch the event. On the East Coast it will be a more suitable 8 a.m.
Nakatani, 28, is a hard-hitting southpaw who trains with L.A’s Rudy Hernandez. His last fight against Mexico’s Sebastian Hernandez was a Fight of the Year candidate. Did that fight take too much away from Nakatani or did it give him the right preparation for Inoue?
We shall find out.
Cinco de Mayo Showdown: Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez vs David Benavidez
Unified cruiserweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (48-1, 30 Kos) defends against two-division champion David Benavidez (31-0, 25 Kos) on Saturday May 2, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Amazon Prime pay-per-view will show the TGB and Golden Boy Promotions event.
“Cinco de Mayo weekend is back and its bigger than ever,” said Tom Brown, promoter for TGB Promotions.
Benavidez has been chasing a big fight for several years. He cleaned up the light heavyweights and could not find anyone willing to step up. He definitely wanted a Mexican showdown with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, but the timing was not right for the redhead. So, when Zurdo won not just one but two cruiserweight titles, voila! A Mexican showdown appeared with the southpaw fighter from Mazatlan.
“I’ve been training for five months for this fight because Zurdo Ramirez is a great fighter,” said Benavidez, who is moving up 25 pounds to face Ramirez. “I’m not scared of nobody.”
Ramirez, like Benavidez, was in search of a big money fight and could not find any. He did fight Russia’s Dmitriy Bivol and was out-worked in a light heavyweight fight. So he moved up to a heavier weight and found success.
“Both of us fighting on Cinco de Mayo weekend, it’s just perfect timing,” Benavidez said.
It will be Mexican against Mexican on Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas.
“At the end of the day, I’m a bad MF,” Benavidez said.
The first Mexican fighter to fight in Las Vegas on Cinco de Mayo was Julio Cesar Chavez on May 8, 1993 when he fought Terrence Ali at the Thomas and Mack Center. Chavez returned on May 7, 1994 to fight Frankie Randall in a rematch at the MGM Grand. Then came De La Hoya fighting Ruelas on May 6, 1995 at Caesars Palace. Next De La Hoya met Yory Boy Campas on May 3, 2003, then met Ricardo Mayorga on May 6, 2006, followed by Floyd Mayweather on May 5, 2007.
This weekend marks the first time cruiserweights headline a Cinco de Mayo fight card in Las Vegas.
“He’s my friend, I like him, but we are here to win,” said Ramirez.
Fights to Watch Saturday, May 2nd (Pacific Time)
Inoue vs Nakatani at 6:00 a.m. (DAZN PPV)
Ramirez vs Benavidez at 5:00 p.m. (Prime PPV)
*main event ring walks expected around 8:20 p.m.
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