Junto Nakatani will reportedly undergo surgery this week to repair a broken left orbital bone he suffered during his May 2 loss to Naoya Inoue, a development that could delay any rematch between the two undefeated stars until 2027.
InsideRingShow reported Monday that Nakatani’s trainer Rudy Hernandez confirmed the injury to The Ring reporter Mike Coppinger. The fracture reportedly occurred late in the fight after an accidental clash of heads in the 10th round, with Inoue later attacking the damaged area during the final rounds.
Despite the injury, Nakatani completed all 12 rounds and lost a unanimous decision at Tokyo Dome in one of the biggest fights of the year.
The surgery complicates growing talk of a possible rematch. Hernandez has already publicly pushed for a second fight and made his confidence clear afterwards.
“If we don’t beat him in the rematch, I will never train fighters again,” Hernandez said recently.
“I will stop.”
Inoue also left the door open for another fight with Nakatani, although he has several other options ahead of him, including a possible move up in weight and a heavily discussed showdown against Jesse Rodriguez.
The injury now changes the timeline. Orbital fractures often require several months of recovery before fighters can return to full sparring and contact training. Hernandez reportedly expects Nakatani to be training in about three to four months, but a rematch against Inoue before the end of 2026 now looks much less certain.
The delay could create a difficult decision for Inoue. He can wait for Nakatani to fully recover, or continue to move through the division while the momentum from their first fight is still fresh.
Their first meeting was a huge commercial success in Japan and produced one of the toughest fights of Inoue’s career. The demand for a rematch is there. The timing may not be sudden.
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Last updated on 2026/05/11 at 16:03
