One of the most highly anticipated boxing matches that can be made is a potential showdown between WBC bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani and undisputed featherweight king Naoya Inoue.

Turki Alalshikh, head of Riyadh Season and chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, is eager to bring the fight to fruition pitting the two of top pound-for-pound stars in the world against one another.

For the fight to move forward between the two Japanese knockout artists, Nakatani would need to move up from 118 to 122 pounds.

Before Inoue can be possible, Nakatani (29-0, 22 KOs) needs to get past David Cuellar (28-0, 18 KOs) on February 24 at the Ariake Arena in Koto-Ku, Japan on ESPN+.

“I think it's a very, very difficult fight against Inoue,” Nakatani’s career-long coach Rudy Hernandez told The Ring. “I would give the edge to Inoue out of respect because he's already a super bantamweight and we are the ones moving up. He's No. 1 in the world, and we are trying to be where he is at. Our job is to be ready and find a way to win. If the day comes, we'll have a lot of work to do. I think Inoue is two steps ahead of all of us.

“Inoue is a very special fighter. I realized that since the first day I saw him and I believe that now, too. If he can knock you out of there in two seconds, he'll do that. He doesn't play cat and mouse. He doesn't play games. I'm a fan of his and I really like him as a fighter. He's a great fighter and is great for the sport.”

Inoue (29-0, 26 KOs) keeps crushing the competition at 122 pounds with little resistance. He has defended the titles against Ye Joon Kim, TJ Doheny, and Luis Nery ever since capturing the crowns from Stephen Fulton and Marlon Tapales. Next on the four-division champion Inoue’s agenda is David Picasso in Las Vegas.

Nakatani, a three-division champion, has already volunteered to be the co-featured fight on the card to better build up the future bout against Inoue.

“Inoue's promoter is on the record saying that Junto is not in their plans in 2025,” said Hernandez. “You can't force someone to do something they don't want to do. That's their lane. We are in our own lane. They have every right to do what they want. They've earned it. If eventually our roads cross, we'll deal with it when that time comes. It's already a great fight in the making. It's a fight that not only the Japanese people are talking about, but people from other parts of the world are as well.”