Naoya Inoue,
Junto Nakatani and
Jesse Rodriguez might as well be three different species of sharks circling each other in a swimming pool.
Inoue,
The Ring’s No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter, is the undisputed champion at 122 pounds.
Nakatani, The Ring’s No. 6-rated P4P fighter, is the The Ring, WBC, and IBF champion at 118.
Rodriguez, The Ring’s No. 7-ranked P4P fighter, is The Ring and WBC champion at 115.
Rodriguez is getting ready for a crack at further unifying the division Saturday
against WBO titleholder Phumelela Cafu at The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas to headline a
Matchroom Boxing card on DAZN.If the minus-3000 betting favorite Rodriguez (21-0, 14 KOs) gets past Cafu (11-0-3, 8 KOs), as expected, an undisputed title fight against WBA and IBF champion
Fernando “Puma” Martinez is already on the calendar on Nov. 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
And after that, the 25-year-old “legend slayer” Rodriguez wants a bite at the Japanese juggernauts in Inoue and Nakatani.
“If Nakatani is still at 118 pounds, I would love that fight as my first one as a bantamweight,” Rodriguez told The Ring. “There really is no time to waste, so why not? It would be a great fight for the fans, and they would be in for a treat. I know it's a fight that I can win. It would be a huge fight for boxing.”
Nakatani’s coach Rudy Hernandez is confident his charge can blast Rodriguez inside eight rounds. Rodriguez is unbothered by the braggadocious remarks.
“I see the comments. I just ignore them and go about my day,” said Rodriguez. “Nakatani is a great fighter, for sure. His wins and accomplishments speak for themselves.”
Rodriguez also said he’s open to jumping up two divisions (a total of seven pounds) to face Inoue.
“Who knows? Maybe one day it will happen,” he said. “If the call came tomorrow, I would do it. We'll have to wait and see.”
Manouk Akopyan is The Ring’s lead writer. Follow him on X and Instagram: @ManoukAkopyan