RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Undefeated junior featherweight Alan Picasso faces a “Monster” task, quite literally, when he takes on undisputed champion and pound-for-pound great Naoya Inoue at Mohammed Abdo Arena in the Ring V main event on Saturday.

Picasso (32-0-1, 17 KOs), who is rated No. 3 by The Ring at 122 pounds, has earned this shot. The Mexican slugger has scored victories over former world title challenger Azat Hovhannisyan and Kyonosuke Kameda in the lead-up to this fight and is unfazed by Inoue’s fearsome reputation.

“I can see that Inoue is strong and very fast,” said Picasso via a translator in an interview with The Ring. “However, he’s a human being and can make mistakes like anyone else. I’m taller than him — everything helps a little bit — and that’s an important point.

“There hasn’t been much time in the ring for me [this year], only one fight. However, I have spent more time in the gym than ever before. After the last fight [with Kameda], I spent a lot of time in the gym and I’m ready.”

The Kameda fight, which took place on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs. Mario Barrios in July, set off alarm bells among some fans and experts. While Picasso deserved the decision, he was pushed hard by the Japanese fighter before claiming a closer-than-expected 10-round majority decision.

“I wasn’t 100% prepared and ready in my last fight because I was dividing myself to finish my degree [in science] and to box,” Picasso said. “Now, I’ve finished my degree, I’m committed to boxing, and I’m ready. It was very difficult to do both things, but I’m lucky in that I have my family to support me. I have two dreams in life: to become a Nobel prize winner and to become a world champion in boxing.”

During fight week, Picasso’s team have been the most boisterous and vocal by far. Their chants of “Mexico, Mexico” have accompanied the challenger’s every move during press events and they carry the swagger of an entourage who have never tasted defeat.

Despite the raucous atmosphere around him, Picasso, who is trained by his father Alonso, remains grounded and lets his fists do the talking. “I fight for my family and for my team,” he said. “Like they say in The Three Musketeers, ‘All for one and one for all.' This is the biggest fight available for a Mexican fighter, so I feel that responsibility, too.

“This wouldn’t just be one belt, but five belts that I’d be taking home. It’s a feeling that I have never encountered before, but I know that it will be very special.”

Promoter Sean Gibbons has worked against Inoue on several occasions. Almost two years ago to the day, on December 26, 2023, Gibbons was in Tokyo when Filipino lefty Marlon Tapales surrendered his unified junior featherweight title to Inoue via 10th-round knockout. It was this fight that saw Inoue crowned as the first undisputed champion at 122 pounds.

“I’m a lot more confident,” Gibbons told The Ring. “Marlon had a lot of experience, but he didn’t seem to have that ‘it factor’ that [Alan] has. [Alan] has studied Bruce Lee and martial arts, really in-depth, and just has this thing about him that he’s winning. There’s no doubt in his mind.

“In terms of tactics, he has to use the distance, use the jab, but also work the body. He has to get inside and slow Inoue down some. Nobody else has been able to get there, but [Alan] has that Mexican-style left hook to the body, which I think will slow Inoue down.”

Despite Picasso’s quality and unbeaten record, a victory over Inoue would represent one of the biggest upsets of all time. This will be Inoue’s 27th consecutive title fight and his sixth defense of the undisputed championship in two years. Those are astonishing statistics in the modern era.

Picasso, 25, is seven years younger than Inoue and does have physical advantages in terms of height and reach. However, he’ll need to produce the performance of a lifetime to vanquish a fighter who looks as close to unbeatable as any champion in boxing today.