Naoya Inoue vs. Alan Picasso Live Winners and Losers, Results
It was "Monster" time in Saudi Arabia.
Four-belt 122-pound champ Naoya Inoue staked a claim to the top of the pound-for-pound mountain when he faced second-ranked WBC contender Alan Picasso atop a four-bout pay-per-view card at Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh.
Inoue arrived at 31-0 with 27 KOs in a career that began in 2012 and he'd also earned titles at 108, 115 and 118 pounds before moving to 122 two years ago.
Picasso had an equally gaudy 32-0-1 record with 17 KOs but he'd fought just three times outside of his native Mexico and was labeled a prohibitive +1400 underdog by DraftKings.
The main event was considered the last obstacle ahead of a 2026 showdown between Inoue and Japanese countryman Junto Nakatani, who met the WBC's 10th-ranked contender, Sebastian Hernandez, in the co-main bout.
The B/R combat team was in position to take in all the action and delivered a real-time list of the event's definitive winners and losers. Take a look at what we came up with and drop a thought of your own in the app comments.
Winner: Main-Event Masterpiece
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He led. He countered. He boxed and moved. He stood and fired.
And not only did Inoue do everything, he did everything well.
Which ultimately yielded both a wide decision over Picasso in their 12-round main event, but also a legitimate claim to take over as No. 1 on the overall pound-for-pound list now that fellow multi-division king Terence Crawford has ceded the throne by retiring.
It was Inoue's 25th straight win in a top-tier title-fight setting, spanning four weight classes since he picked up his first world title at 108 pounds in just his sixth professional fight.
He was faster, busier and more accurate throughout, gradually sapping the normally active Picasso's willingness to press the action and leave himself open to punishing return fire to the head and especially the body.
"It's the matrix right in front of you unfolding. It's like working out a Rubik's Cube," analyst Darren Barker, a former world title challenger at middleweight, said. "He damaged not only the physical frame of Picasso but also the spirit. There's levels. Sometimes you come up against someone who's just that much better than you.
"He's a special, special fighter."
Inoue swept the scorecards with tallies of 119-109, 120-108 and 117-111, going the distance for the second straight fight for the first time in his 13-year career.
He'd won 10 of 12 rounds on two cards and nine of 12 on a third while beating Murodjon Akhmadaliev in September.
It's the first time since Larry Holmes in 1983 that a fighter recognized as champion in his weight class by The Ring racked up four successful title defenses in a calendar year.
"I'm going to be much better next time," Inoue said.
Loser: Combative Climb
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Nakatani winning was ultimately no surprise.
But seeing the unbeaten pound-for-pound star slumped on his stool, an angry right eye swelling by the second, and looking unsure he'd done enough to hold off Hernandez was shocking to anyone who'd gone all-in on the Inoue match next year.
The favorite escaped with a fair but unanimous decision, getting seven of 12 rounds on two scorecards and 10 of 12 on a ridiculous third to hold up his end of the super-fight bargain.
B/R also had it 7-5 for Nakatani, who landed 297 of 835 punches compared to 273 of 921 from Hernandez.
"Hernandez was a very tough, gritty fighter," Nakatani said. "It was a great learning experience for me. I was prepared for the match to develop this way. He gave a great fight. It was a great opportunity for me to grow."
It was a difficult first trip to 122 pounds for Nakatani, who controlled the early rounds with superior volume and precision, but seemed surprised that the shots he'd landed hadn't really dissuaded his opponent, who arrived with a 20-0 record and top-12 world rankings from three of the four major sanctioning bodies.
Hernandez began carrying the fight in the middle rounds as Nakatani slowed, frequently pinning his high-profile rival against the ropes with a non-stop work rate. Nakatani created space and landed some stinging shots in the 10th and 11th before Hernandez surged again in the final three minutes.
But to those who are concerned if the Inoue fight still happens, don't be.
"It'll still be on," Randy Gordon, former chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission, told Bleacher Report.
Winner: Overcoming Ambition
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When it comes to stardom, Reito Tsutsumi is an impatient man.
The 23-year-old lefty appeared on big cards in New York and Las Vegas for his first three pro fights and said his objective is to become a champion by his 10th outing.
But for a few moments on Saturday, it seemed his reach had exceeded his grasp.
Awkward Mexican export Leobardo Quintana was ready to make his own impact and pushed the prospect early in their scheduled eight-rounder, forcing a bloodied Tsutsumi to dig deep for the first time before he rallied to score a fourth-round TKO.
"These are the kinds of tests you need if you want to push forward that quickly," Barker said. "Brilliant matchmaking. After a couple of rounds you're saying, 'Wow, is this a bit too soon?' But I'm impressed."
Tsutsumi hurt Quintana to the body late in the third and continued the assault after a one-minute break, wobbling his foe with a hard left to the head and dropping him with a follow-up right.
Quintana rose but was immediately waved off by referee Danrex Tapdasan.
"His technique was not what I expected. It was difficult," Tsutsumi said. "But I practiced against a lot of boxers, and I could draw on that experience. Next year I have to level up my boxing, step by step."
Winner: Flipping the Script
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Eridson Garcia didn't know his role.
Cast as the hapless victim in unbeaten Japanese lightweight Taiga Imanaga's introduction to the world-class level, the Dominican veteran turned it into his own star-making opportunity and walked away from the 10-rounder with a split decision after a dramatic late rally.
Garcia earned scores of 96-93 and 95-94 from two ringside judges, offsetting a 95-94 tally in Imanaga's direction and handing the 26-year-old lefty his first loss after nine wins.
B/R also had it 95-94 for Garcia, giving him the final four rounds and a two-point edge in the eighth thanks to a decisive knockdown from what Barker labeled "a right hand from hell."
"Kind of a cagey start from both, but it really caught fire," Barker said. "That flew by. The second half of that fight was fantastic."
Indeed, Imanaga seemed comfortably ahead after a workmanlike performance through the first six rounds, but he was hurt late in the seventh and clearly rattled in the eighth after the knockdown—though he gamely survived the final 90 seconds with a swelling right eye.
Garcia was busier and sharper through the final two rounds as well and ultimately landed 78 of 200 power shots compared to 64 of 157 for Imanaga.
"That wasn't the plan. I didn't feel like I had sufficient preparation," Garcia said. "But when I saw that my opponent was hurt, I took full advantage."
Loser: Two-Title Significance
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The main show lost half of its championship mojo when IBF 115-pound king Willibaldo Garcia's title defense against former two-division claimant Kenshiro Teraji was scrubbed when Garcia fell ill and was hospitalized.
Garcia successfully weighed in at 114 pounds but began having issues soon after, according to manager Sean Gibbons.
"I don't know what he had, but his stomach wasn't feeling good," Gibbons told The Ring. "So I went to have his stomach checked, and he's just not feeling great. That's it."
Garcia was defending for the first time after winning the title in May, while Teraji, who'd been a champion at 108 and 112 pounds, hadn't fought since losing his WBA and WBC belts at 112 to Ricardo Sandoval in August.
Results
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Main Card
Naoya Inoue def. Alan Picasso by unanimous decision (119-109, 120-108, 117-111)
Junto Nakatani def. Sebastian Hernandez by unanimous decision (115-113, 115-113, 118-110)
Eridson Garcia def. Taiga Imanaga by split decision (96-93, 94-95, 95-94)
Reito Tsutsumi def. Leobardo Quintana by TKO, 1:14, Round 4
