WBC bantamweight champ Alexandro Santiago puts his belt on the line as an extreme underdog against challenger Junto Nakatani on Saturday, February 24 in Tokyo, Japan. It’s extremely rare to see a titleholder as a +549 underdog, but Nakatani isn’t your typical opponent. After his streak of 20 consecutive fights without a loss ended in 2021, Santiago responded with three straight wins earning a shot at the vacant WBC belt, which he won by outpointing Nonito Dontaire in his last outing.
Nakatani isn’t your typical challenger, though, as he enters this bout undefeated in 26 professional fights and a former belt holder in two different weight classes. He dominated the opposition en route to the WBO flyweight title, which he won by TKO over Giemel Magramo in 2020. He also claimed the WBO junior bantamweight belt with a KO of Andrew Maloney last may before stopping Argi Cortes four months later in his first title defense. Nakatani hit the board as a -910 boxing betting favorite.
Alexandro Santiago vs. Junto Nakatani Betting Odds
Alexandro Santiago +549
Junto Nakatani -910
The 12-round bantamweight title fight between WBC champ Alexandro Santiago ( 28-3-5, 14 KOs ) and challenger Junto Nakatani ( 26-0, 19 KOs ) will take place on Saturday, February 24, 2024 at Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo, Japan and will stream on ESPN+.
Alexandro Santiago vs. Junto Nakatani Fight Preview
Nakatani continues to move up in weight searching for an opponent who can at least give him a fight. His first 21 bouts all came in his home country of Japan where he claimed the Japanese Youth flyweight title in 2017 and the Japanese flyweight strap in 2019. In what most considered his first real test as a boxer, Nakatani beat former IBF and IBO light flyweight champ Milan Melindo by a sixth-round TKO then scored a TKO over Magramo 13 months later to claim the WBO flyweight belt elevating his status within the division.
After defending his title with TKO wins over Angel Acosta and Ryota Yamauchi, Nakatani vacated his belt in order to move up to the junior bantamweight division. In his first bout he faced WBO challenger Francisco Rodriguez Jr. scoring a convincing unanimous decision victory.
A title fight against Kazuto Ioka was scheduled for early 2023 until Ioka vacated the strap to pursue another bout. Instead Nakatani fought WBO international super flyweight champ Andrew Maloney for the vacant belt. Proving that his powerful punches translate to moves up a weight class, Nakatani dropped Maloney three times with the final highlight-reel blow in the 12th and final round ending the fight.
In his first title defense Nakatani was equally impressive scoring a dominant unanimous decision over Argi Cortes showing off his boxing skills and proving he’s not just a thrower.
Though he just recently turned 28, Santiago has a ton of experience inside the ring with 36 professional fights on his resume. That can be good or bad depending on how you look at it. The experience against a vast number of fighters will have Santiago prepared for anything his opponent sends at him. On the flip side that’s a lot of punches thrown and landed in a short period of time. The good news for Santiago’s corner is that it’s been seven months since his last fight.
That’s the longest stretch of inactivity for Santiago in four years. He had a break of 10 months between wins over Roberto Sanchez Cantu in November 2019 and Willibaldo Garcia Perez in September 2020. Santiago went a span of seven years and 20 fights without a loss before Gary Russell scored a majority decision in 2021. The No. 3 ranked bantamweight by The Ring, Santiago has established himself inside the division. In his first world title fight he battled then IBF super flyweight champ Jerwin Ancajas to a 12-round draw.
Bet Alexandro Santiago vs. Junto Nakatani
There’s no debate that Nakatani is the more skilled fighter. And he’s dismantled all his opponents on his way to two different weight class belts. It’s almost become like a broken record in these boxing articles talking about a massive favorite with no value on the moneyline. Guess what? That’s exactly where Nakatani is. In order to move odds in your favor when backing the favorite it helps to pinpoint a method of victory and even a round. I can see Nakatani wearing down his opponent with his powerful blows eventually leading to a stoppage in the later rounds.
Boxing Odds Pick: Junto Nakatani / (TKO)
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
Check out the latest odds at BookMaker
