Nakatani made a big first pitch in a huge baseball game in Japan that amassed a big reaction right across Asia and even in America.
The Japanese pound for pound boxer erupted spectators recently in Japan and baseball is the first past time of America after all.
Not only that, his blockbuster fight this year vs Naoya Inoue had a big hit in America, Japan and internationally in all numbers.
Spectators in the US loved the fight, Inoue the victor on point but one heck of a scrap, Naoya The Monster Inoue the pound for pound number one in the entire sport since.
It proves yet again, and his pitch in baseball in Japan, just the outstanding huge year for the sport internationally and in America so far this year, some notes on this;
- Junto Nakatani threw a ceremonial first pitch at a baseball game in Japan
- This cross-sport moment above helped promote boxing again to a mainstream national audience
- The fight sold out the 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome, generating over $30 million at the gate
- The gate revenue ranks among the top five highest in boxing history and has been set this year, an outstanding year for the sport already in 2026
- Pay-per-view sales shattered Japan’s domestic record with an estimated 800,000 buys
- PPV was priced at around approximately $54 per purchase in Japan
- Total domestic revenue including tickets, PPV, and cinema screenings reached $64 to $65 million
- The event proved boxing is a global mainstream draw, with Japan as a co-capital alongside the US
The above brings baseball fans in Japan and the US closer to boxing also, cross promoting America’s favorite past time to boxing spectators in Japan and in the US also for global baseball fans.
Let that sink in.
Boxing is having more than a very good year.
Boxing is back.
Case proven in the above, again, yet again.
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