Rudy Hernandez Reveals When Junto Nakatani Stopped Respecting Naoya Inoue’s Power

Hernandez believes Nakatani discovered too late that he could trade with Inoue during their Tokyo Dome fight

Rudy Hernandez believes Junto Nakatani’s biggest mistake against Naoya Inoue was respecting the undisputed champion’s power for too long. Hernandez says the fight changed once Nakatani realized Inoue’s punches were manageable, but by then the scorecards were already slipping away.

“The moment Junto told me that [Inoue] doesn’t hit that hard, that was a game-changer. I wish he had told me that in the second or third round,” said Hernandez to Boxingscene.

“If we don’t beat [Inoue] in the rematch, I will never train fighters again. I will retire. I will quit, because I really believe in the rematch we are going to kick Inoue’s butt.”

Naoya Inoue controlled much of the early part of the fight at the Tokyo Dome, where many fans expected him to defeat Nakatani comfortably. However, the pace changed dramatically between rounds seven and 10 as Nakatani began pressing forward and exchanging more willingly.

Hernandez believes that the stretch came after Nakatani realized Inoue’s punches were manageable, allowing him to fight with more confidence after spending much of the bout respecting the undisputed champion’s offense.

Inoue still closed the show strongly and won a unanimous decision, but Hernandez appears convinced the fight gave Nakatani and his team a clearer idea of how to approach a second meeting.

A rematch has not been discussed publicly, but Hernandez clearly believes the first fight answered important questions.

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