Challenger downplays “Monster” label ahead of showdown at Tokyo Dome

Junto Nakatani says he does not view Naoya Inoue as anything more than “a human being” ahead of their fight in Tokyo. The challenger dismissed the “Monster” label as he prepares for Saturday’s bout.

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“People call him ‘Monster,’ but he’s just a human being,” Nakatani said when asked about Inoue’s reputation. “That’s how I see him.”

Nakatani is playing the psychological game perfectly. When you’re facing a guy who has been built up as an indestructible “Monster” for over a decade, the first thing you have to do is strip away the myth.

If you walk into that ring believing the hype, you’ve already lost half the battle before a punch is even thrown.

Nakatani kept the same calm tone throughout, treating the label as something external rather than something that carries weight once the fight starts.

That mindset lines up with how he’s approaching the biggest night of his career. Fighting in front of 55,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome, Nakatani acknowledged the scale of the event but kept his focus on execution rather than emotion. He said his preparation has been built around doing everything right in camp and carrying that into the ring without distraction.

At the same time, Nakatani didn’t ignore what Inoue does well. He pointed to the champion’s punching power as a clear strength and said his own game plan has been constructed with that in mind. The difference is that he isn’t allowing that strength to turn into something larger than it is.

Instead of feeding into the idea of facing something untouchable, Nakatani is reducing the fight to a simpler equation. Two fighters, both prepared, meeting on the same night.

That approach strips away the narrative that has followed Inoue through multiple divisions and leaves Nakatani with a task he believes is manageable. Whether that view holds up under the lights at the Tokyo Dome will decide more than just the result.

It will test whether the “Monster” label still carries weight when the opponent refuses to acknowledge it.