Where Junto Nakatani Ranks In 122-Pound Division After Debut Win

Junto Nakatani is officially a top super bantamweight contender.

Three months after vacating the WBC, IBF and The Ring bantamweight titles, Nakatani successfully made his 122-pound debut with a unanimous decision win over Sebastian Hernandez. The former three-division champion has now breached the rankings of a fourth division.

Nakatani broke into his new division as a consensus top-five super bantamweight contender. The 27-year-old is now the No. 4-ranked 122-pound contender by Ring Magazine, behind champion Naoya Inoue, Marlon Tapales, Murodjon Akhmadaliev, and Sam Goodman.

📋 The Ring’s latest junior-featherweight rankings:

‼️Junto Nakatani enters as the No. 4 ranked junior-featherweight after his victory over Sebastian Hernandez last weekend.

Who do you think should be higher or lower ❓ pic.twitter.com/IHKNMiD9gG
— Ring Magazine (@ringmagazine) December 31, 2025

Ring Magazine has Nakatani ranked the lowest of any sanctioning body. The Japanese southpaw is the No. 1 contender in the WBC, WBA, and WBO. He is the No. 3-ranked contender by the IBF, which does not have a No. 1 or No. 2-ranked 122-pound contender.

Nakatani enters 2026 without a belt for the first time since 2023, when he claimed the WBO super flyweight title with a 12-round knockout of Andrew Moloney. He was granted an immediate 115-pound title shot against Alexandro Santiago less than a year later.

Nakatani did not dismantle Hernandez as easily as some predicted, but he got the job done across the board. Many fans were critical about how much he struggled against Hernandez, whose highest ranking is No. 11 in the WBO poll.

Nakatani's new ranking allows him to challenge undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue in 2026, which is all but a done deal. The two Japanese stars both fought and won atop 'The Ring V' fight card, which was almost entirely promoted as a part of their eventual fight build.

Naoya Inoue, Junto Nakatani set to square off in 2026

Junto Nakatani (left) and Naoya Inoue (right) during the JBC Annual Boxing Awards ceremony 2024 at Tokyo Dome Hotel. | IMAGO / AFLOSPORT

While some fans are now skeptical of Nakatani's chances against Inoue after his fight with Hernandez, the bout will proceed as anticipated.

With Inoue and Nakatani both tentatively under the Riyadh Season banner, the matchup is virtually guaranteed to happen in 2026. The timing could get murky, however, with Inoue expressing interest in taking some time off after fighting four times in 2025.

Nakatani fought three times himself, but no champion competed in 2025 more than Inoue. The 32-year-old's last two fights both went to the scorecards, marking the first time in his 32-fight career that has happened in consecutive outings.

Inoue remains committed to the matchup with Nakatani, which he has teased as his last. 'The Monster' has openly discussed his impending retirement over the last year, believing he has little left to prove before hanging up his gloves as one of the greatest boxers of all time.

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