YOKOHAMA, Japan – Eddie Hearn believes he has the next Mexican superstar on his hands.

That man is Eduardo “Sugar” Nunez. The junior lightweight, hailing from Los Mochis, Mexico, has racked up one of the best knockout percentages in boxing. Nunez, 27-1 (27 KOs), will finally get his shot at the IBF featherweight title this Wednesday in Yokohama, Japan, after he was made to wait while then-champion Anthony Cacace decided his next move. Cacace decided against fighting his mandatory challenger in Nunez and relinquished the belt. The Mexican will now fight in enemy territory against Masanori Rikiishi for the vacant title.

It is not often that Hearn allows one of his most prized assets to fight on another promotion or on foreign soil in one of the most crucial fights of their career. The promoter, however, is extremely confident heading into Wednesday’s showdown.

“Yeah, I'm here because I really believe this is the next superstar of Mexican boxing,” Hearn told BoxingScene. “We had no fear taking this fight in the lion’s den, if you like, because that's how much we believe in Nunez. 

“We got a great offer from Mr. Ahashi and Mr. Honda, Tieken, and we're here, and this is a great fight. Great fight. I mean, it's not very often that you end up putting a fighter in a fight with so much confidence, wherever you are in the world, and that's how I feel about Nunez. So, great camp, great prep, it's been a long time coming because of the Cacace situation, but now we've got it, and we've got the big shot on Wednesday night.”

Hearn expects Nunez to leave Japan with the IBF strap thanks to another blistering performance. He will then look to build the Mexican’s profile in his home country and in the States, and highlighted another of Matchroom’s 130lb fighters he could face.

“[He can] really become a superstar in Mexico, and obviously throughout all those regions and states in America that have that massive Mexican fan base,” he said. We love a fight with Ray Ford. We think [Ford]’s one of the best in the division as well. So we've got that, but so many different options as well at super feather.”