Vincent Astrolabio | Facebook photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — MP Promotions’ Vincent “Asero” Astrolabio has officially issued a challenge to the newly-crowned three-division world champion Junto Nakatani of Japan.
In a video recently posted on Viva Promotions’ Facebook page, Astrolabio was seen congratulating Nakatani and he finished his short speech by challenging the latter, who just won the World Boxing Council (WBC) world bantamweight title last Saturday.
Nakatani dethroned Mexican Alexandro Santiago via a sixth-round technical knockout in the undercard of Takuma Inoue-Jerwin Ancaja’s world title bout in Tokyo, Japan.
The 26-year-old Nakatani cemented his status as one of the best Japanese boxers of his generation by becoming a three-division world champion in the flyweight, super flyweight, and now bantamweight divisions.
He also has an impressive undefeated 27-win record with 20 knockouts.
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However, Astrolabio is unfazed by this disparity.
“Congratulations, Junto Nakatani, for winning the match; enjoy your win, but I’m ready anytime when you are ready,” Astrolabio said in his video.
Astrolabio has all the rights to challenge Nakatani as he is the mandatory challenger for the former’s WBC world bantamweight title.
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Before snatching the world title from Santiago, Nakatani was ranked No. 1 in the WBC bantamweight division, with Astrolabio ranked No. 2.
Also, Astrolabio’s record is at par with Nakatani with 19-4 (win-loss) with 14 knockouts.
He earned the world title shot after scoring an 11th-round TKO against Navapon Khaikanha of Thailand last August in Bangkok, Thailand.
In his first world title fight, Astrolabio fell short against WBO world bantamweight king Jason Moloney by majority decision in Stockton, California in the United States in May 2023.
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Although there is no formal contract signed yet between Nakatani and Astrolabio, they are certainly set for a collision course this year.