Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez has rated Naoya Inoue’s performance against Junto Nakatani ahead of their potential undisputed showdown early next year.
The super-bantamweight king retained his titles against Nakatani earlier this month, claiming a unanimous decision victory at a sold-out Tokyo Dome.
While not being the most action-packed affair, the pair engaged in a high-intensity chess match that seemed to be favouring the challenger between rounds eight and 10.
In response, though, Inoue was able to demonstrate his elite-level adaptability, making the necessary adjustments to outpoint the three-weight world champion.
This saw him make a seventh successful defence of his undisputed crown at 122lbs, where he has reigned supreme for the best part of two years.
Someone who could pose a threat to his supremacy, meanwhile, is Rodriguez, who looks to become a three-division world champion in his next outing.
The 26-year-old will face WBA bantamweight champion Antonio Vargas on June 13, having unified the super-flyweight division with back-to-back stoppages over Phumelela Cafu and Fernando Martinez.
Like Inoue, ‘Bam’ is considered a top five pound-for-pound operator, with preliminary talks for their possible blockbuster encounter having already taken place.
In the meantime, Rodriguez must remain in the win column, but tells Fight Hub TV that he gives ‘The Monster’ an A-plus rating for his performance against Nakatani.
“I believe he did a great job – A-plus performance. He beat another [top] pound-for-pound fighter in Nakatani, so I think that’s one of his best wins.”
Clearly, there is a tremendous amount of respect between ‘Bam’ and Inoue, who, at the age of 33, is perhaps approaching the closing stages of his illustrious career.