RIYADH, Saudia Arabia — Somewhat lost in the perpetual buzz surrounding the mooted superfight between Naoya Inoue and Junto Nakatani and their pending bouts this weekend is another amazing Japanese fighter.

Former two-weight world champion Kenshiro Teraji, "The Amazing Boy," hopes to claim a third divisional title at the expense of Mexico's IBF junior bantamweight titleholder Willibaldo Garcia when the pair throw down at Mohammed Abdo Arena on Saturday.

Teraji (25-2, 16 KOs) is boxing royalty in his home country and a Hall of Fame lock. Over the past decade, the 33-year-old boxer-puncher has won 16 of 18 world title bouts, posting notable wins against Ganigan Lopez (twice), Masamichi Yabuki, Hiroto Kyoguchi, Hekkie Budler, Carlos Canizales and Seigo Yuri Akui.

However, Teraji is coming off July's heartbreaking 12-round majority decision loss to Ricardo Sandoval, which saw him surrender his unified flyweight crown. That colossal upset led many fans and experts to believe Teraji was struggling to make 112 pounds, a notion he was eager to dismiss.

"I could have done the weight cut to make flyweight but was given this chance to fight Garcia for the title, so that's why I moved up," Teraji told The Ring via a translator. "Making weight has obviously been easier for me. I've also been able to practice very hard and get myself prepared.

"I’ve enjoyed the last few days in Riyadh and I’m excited to be here."

Garcia, The Ring's No. 8 junior bantamweight contender, has had a tough climb to the top.

Turning professional in 2017, he lost four of his first six fights and was essentially learning on the job. He dropped close decisions to future titlist Alexandro Santiago and former two-weight world champ Paul Butler, but all the while the 36-year-old slugger improved.

In his two most recent bouts, the determined Garcia fought to a draw against Rene Calixto before scoring a close split decision triumph over his countryman for the vacant IBF title. This weekend's fight will be his maiden defense and the biggest fight of his life.

"[Garcia is] aggressive and wants to get close, so it's very important to control the distance against him," Teraji said. "I plan to box both long and in close to see what my opponent does. I'll then decide the best way to fight him in order to win.

"I have more energy, power, and more speed in this division, so we’ll see how the fight goes."

Despite unifying at junior flyweight and flyweight, Teraji is yet to become an undisputed champion. Should he defeat Garcia, there may be an opportunity to face pound-for-pound stalwart Bam Rodriguez, who holds The Ring, WBA, WBC and WBO 115-pound titles.

One potential roadblock to that fight transpiring, however, is Australian star and IBF mandatory challenger Andrew Moloney, who has been ordered to face the Garcia-Teraji winner by June 25. While Teraji couldn't shed any light on how that situation would play out, his eyes widened when Rodriguez's name was mentioned.

"I didn't watch the full fight between Bam Rodriguez and Fernando Martinez," said Teraji, who is admittedly not a fight fan. "From what I did see, including the knockout, Bam was very strong and had great timing.

"If I should win [against Garcia] and become champion, then I would plan to fight Bam sometime in 2026. However, before that can happen, I must win this fight."

A battle between Rodriguez and Teraji would feature two future Hall of Famers who always bring the heat. In terms of superfights at 115 pounds, this one would be the gold standard.