Takuma Inoue had built a commanding lead when Tenshin Nasukawa dropped him in the seventh round. The knockdown turned their rematch into a tense finish, but Inoue recovered and retained his WBC bantamweight title by unanimous decision Sunday at Toyota Arena in Tokyo.
The judges scored it 116-111, 116-111 and 114-113 for Inoue, who improved to 23-2 with five knockouts. Nasukawa fell to 8-2 with three knockouts.
Inoue began as though he had carried the answer from their first fight into the second. His jab and straight right kept Nasukawa from taking the initiative he had promised. Inoue also held the better position through much of the first half, forcing Nasukawa to find a way in before he could let his left hand go.
Nasukawa found that opening in round seven. The knockdown gave him a 10-8 round and changed the pace of the fight. He pressed harder afterward, landed his left hand more often, and made Inoue defend a lead that had looked secure minutes earlier.
That response made this a far more demanding title defense than their November 2025 meeting, which Inoue won on scores of 116-112 twice and 117-111. Nasukawa had since stopped Juan Francisco Estrada, and the improvement showed here: he hurt Inoue and gave himself a chance to win on the cards.
Inoue’s recovery was the difference. He did not let the knockdown dictate every round that followed, and he did enough late to protect the work he had banked early. The 114-113 score captured how close Nasukawa came, while the two wider cards reflected Inoue’s strong start.
It is Inoue’s second defense of the belt he first won against Nasukawa.
The rematch for Nasukawa answered whether he could trouble the champion. He could. He still could not take enough rounds from him.
Read the full article here