There was a Terence Crawford Inoue Nakatani meeting between the three boxers in the dressing rooms in boxing today before the big fight.
Before Naoya Inoue and Junto Nakatani got in the ring the American former pound for pound number one, now retired Terence Crawford, called into each boxers’ dressing rooms before the fight to wish them well.
Inoue is now pound for pound number one for us after the win today.
Here’s how Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue stack up on pound-for-pound credentials after Inoue’s UD win over Junto Nakatani today, May 2, 2026:
Naoya Inoue “The Monster”
- Record: 33-0 (27 KOs) after beating Nakatani
- Titles: 4-weight world champion: light flyweight, junior bantamweight, bantamweight, super bantamweight
- Undisputed: 2-weight undisputed champion at bantamweight + super bantamweight
- P4P Ranking: #2 on The Ring’s P4P list behind Oleksandr Usyk going into the fight
- Recent resume: Beat Nakatani, who was #6 P4P and 32-0, by UD 116-112, 116-112, 115-113
- Quality wins: David Picasso, Murodjon Akhmadaliev, Ramon Cardenas, Ye Joon Kim, TJ Doheny in last 12 months
- Activity: 4-0 in 2025, 7 straight defenses of undisputed 122-lb crown
- Legacy note: 27 consecutive wins in world title fights, surpassed Joe Louis + Floyd Mayweather
Terence Crawford “Bud”
- Record: 42-0 (31 KOs), retired Dec 2025
- Titles: 4-division world champion: lightweight, junior welterweight, welterweight, junior middleweight
- Undisputed: First male 2-weight undisputed in 4-belt era: 140 + 147
- P4P Ranking: #3 on most active lists pre-retirement, but #1 after beating Canelo
- Recent resume: Beat Canelo Alvarez Sept 2025 to become 3-weight undisputed, no other fighter has done it
- Quality wins: Errol Spence Jr TKO9, Israil Madrimov UD, Shawn Porter, Kell Brook, Amir Khan
- Activity: Retired after Canelo win, says “no figure financially” would bring him back
- Legacy note: 100-year record for making history with world title win in 2014
Head-to-Head P4P Comparison Post-Nakatani
- Undisputed status: Crawford 3-weight undisputed vs Inoue 2-weight undisputed
- Opposition beaten: Crawford beat #1 P4P Canelo + unified 147 vs Spence
- Opposition beaten: Inoue just beat #6 P4P Nakatani, plus Picasso, Akhmadaliev
- Resume depth: Crawford cleared 140 + 147 divisions; Inoue cleared 118 + 122
- Activity: Inoue active, 7 defenses in 16 months; Crawford retired
- Current P4P debate: Inoue #2, Crawford “would still be #1 if active” per SI
- X-factor: With Crawford retired, Inoue win over Nakatani strengthens case for #1 P4P
Naoya Inoue reacted to his big win over Junto Nakatani here a short time ago in boxing results today.
