Remember that in the Fall of 1941, the “Imperial Japanese Navy” was the punchline of a lot of jokes.
Until one day in December...
And that Imperial Japanese Navy of 1941 would beat the Iranians of today.
To truly project power with any type of a chance to stay in the area, you need at least one functional aircraft carrier. Last time I checked, the Iranians don’t and won’t have one.
If they want to play frigate Navy it will be an exciting 15 minutes once the shooting starts.