Junto Nakatani's long-time trainer Rudy Hernandez has made clear the respect he and his fighter hold for Naoya Inoue will not soften their approach inside Tokyo Dome's ropes on May 2, when the Japanese southpaw bids to unseat the undisputed super-bantamweight king.
"It's one thing to respect the fighter, but when the bell rings, we're going to go in there and try to knock his head off," Hernandez told BoxingScene at the Los Angeles gym where he has trained Nakatani since the fighter was 14. "We can't settle for anything less than winning. Winning, to us, means everything."
Nakatani, 32-0 with 24 KOs, carries a three-inch height advantage and a one-inch reach advantage into the undisputed title fight against Inoue (32-0, 27 KOs) on DAZN. The crowd of 55,000 at Tokyo Dome is sold out. On Monday, Nakatani drilled positioning and rapid punching sequences intended to break through Inoue's guard and complicate the fight for the 33-year-old, who has been dropped twice in his past six bouts.
"The advantage [Nakatani] has is his height and reach, and the fact he's a little younger," Hernandez said. "Other than that, it's about who's going to land first, who's the quicker of the two, and who's going to be able to better take the punches."
Nakatani, fluent in body language more than words in front of English-speaking media, flashed a smile between drills as he prepared to fly to Tokyo on Friday.
"I'm very much looking forward to it, and I believe I can deliver a performance that will satisfy all 55,000 spectators," Nakatani said. "I believe boxing is a sport that can move people's hearts deeply, and for me, there's a significant meaning to that."
Hernandez, who guided his late brother Genaro Hernandez to two junior lightweight world title reigns during the 1990s, has trained Nakatani for 14 years - fulfilling what he has described as a lifelong ambition to take a young amateur all the way to a million-dollar purse. That benchmark was hit in December when Nakatani beat Mexico's Sebastian Hernandez in Saudi Arabia in a surprisingly competitive bout on his 122lbs debut.
Concerns about the pace at which Nakatani has been integrating in-camp tweaks drew a pointed response from the trainer.
"When you're working on something, it takes some time," Hernandez told skeptics. "On fight night, that's when you have to perform. Not in the gym."
With Inoue installed as a -450 favourite and Nakatani a 3-1 underdog, the veteran cornerman is clear: "He's ready."