WBC #5 Nakatani finishes Filipino Alimento

Fightnews.com

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unbeaten flyweight prospect, WBC#5 Junto Nakatani (16-0, 12 KOs), 112, impressively disposed of WBO AP#10 Filipino Dexter Alimento (13-4, 9 KOs) at 0:36 into the third round of a scheduled ten on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan.

Having beaten world-rated Mario Andrade on a technical decision this April, the 20-year-old tall southpaw collected another victim to impress the audience.

Junto took the initiative from the outset and was obviously in command in the first two rounds. Nakatani, in round three, accelerated his two-fisted attack and connected with vicious body shots followed by southpaw lefts. Down went Dexter. He couldn’t beat the count to make the bright prospect an early victor.

Now that former WBC champ Daigo Higa is evidently unlikely to campaign in the 112-pound division any longer after having lost his belt on the scale this April, Nakatani will zoom up as a headliner on the Japanese flyweight front soon or later. He has been frequently training in Los Angeles under the tutelage of veteran handler Rudy Hernandez, and has shown a remarkable progress. He is worth watching.