Undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue and Alan Picasso successfully made weight ahead of their fight tonight.
The pair meet in the main event of Ring V: Night of the Samurai, live on Main Event (via Foxtel and Kayo Sports) and DAZN, on a fight card which features five of Japan’s best boxers.
The card began at 9pm AEDT while the main event of Inoue vs Picasso is expected to take place close to midnight AEDT.
Ring V: Inoue vs Picasso | Saturday 27 Dec from 9pm AEDT | Undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya ‘The Monster’ Inoue puts his titles on the line against Mexico’s Alan Picasso, in Riyadh. | Order Now with Main Event on Kayo Sports.
On the scales, the challenger Picasso registered 121.1lbs, while Inoue was slightly heavier at 121.5lbs.
For Inoue (ranked second in the world pound-for-pound), a win over Picasso has two significant implications.
First of all, it will likely set up a much desired all-Japanese clash with Junto Nakatani who features in the co-main event.
Secondly, a successful defence of the Ring Magazine super bantamweight title will see him match the record of the legendary Larry Holmes who defended his Ring Magazine heavyweight title four times in a calendar year.
When asked by Mike Coppinger about why he likes to keep so active when a lot of boxing’s superstars are lucky to fight twice a year, Inoue revealed that it’s his love for the sweet science which inspires him to keep stepping into the ring.
“I fight for myself, I want my fans and supporters to see as many matches as possible, and I love boxing,” Inoue said.
Inoue will be the favourite to beat Picasso, but the Mexican challenger is ready to pull off a major upset and produce one of the biggest wins in the country’s boxing history.
After stepping off the scales in Riyadh, Picasso was in a confident mood and urged his supporters to keep giving him the confidence come the opening bell.
“Give me all the confidence you’ve already shown me, I’m going to fight for my people tomorrow,” Picasso said in a defiant tone.
While there will be plenty of attention on Inoue-Picasso, the co-main event between Nakatani (ranked sixth in the world pound-for-pound) and Sebastian Hernandez will have similar focus.
This will be Nakatani’s first fight at super bantamweight after enjoying world title success in three lower weight classes, but securing a date with fellow countryman with a win over Hernandez will be his biggest achievement.
After successfully making weight for the contest and registering 121.6lbs on the scales, Nakatani promised to produce a ‘big bang’ against the 25-year-old Mexican.
“My preparation went very well, tomorrow you will see my big bang,” Nakatani said.
“It’s going to be my first fight at super bantamweight, I want to have a good experience and then move to the next stage.”
FULL INOUE v PICASSO FIGHT CARD
Naoya Inoue vs Alan Picasso; Super bantamweight, for the undisputed title
Junto Nakatani vs Sebastian Hernandez; Super bantamweight
Taiga Imanaga vs Eridson Garcia; Lightweight
Reito Tsutsumi def Leobardo Quintana at Super featherweight via TKO at 1:14 R4
* Willibaldo Garcia vs Kenshiro Teraji’s IBG Super Flyweight title fight cancelled with Teraji looking for a replacement fight
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