Former five-weight boxing world champion Floyd Mayweather’s fight against Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa is officially off!
Boxing fans around the world were shocked to hear the news that Floyd would be returning to the ring. Many were hoping that the news meant they would be seeing the rematch of the Connor McGregor fight, or perhaps the rumoured bout against Khabib Nurmagomedov after his recent victory over the Irishman in the octagon.
News broke that the fight was to take place in Japan against a fighter that sent google into a frenzy as fans the world over tried to figure out who he was.
It was unclear under what rules the one-off bout with Nasukawa, 20, would take place. The words ‘Publicity Stunt’ were used a lot after the story broke but it seems the fighter and his team were just as confused as we were about what was happening.
Mayweather, 41, stated that he had been asked to compete in a non-televised event for some “wealthy spectators”, which probably should have triggered alarm bells.
When asked about the fight Mayweather replied, “Once I arrived to the press conference, my team and I were completely derailed. We Should have put a stop to it immediately”.
Mayweather claims him and his team were blindsided my organisers whom had made plans without his consent or approval. He made clear in an Instagram post that he was asked to participate in a nine-minute exhibition of three rounds with an opponent selected by the Rizen Fighting Federation and that he didn’t actually know who Nasukawa was until his recent trip.
What was unclear in the Instagram post, however, was whether the contest will still go ahead or not. Maybe if the price is right?
Mayweather was named the highest paid celebrity in the world by Forbes in July so we imagine the price will have to be pretty high.