BREAKING: Floyd Mayweather to Make His MMA Debut in Japan’s RIZIN 14

Getty Images Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV [Aug 26, 2017]

Floyd Mayweather hasn’t participated in any combat sports since his 10th-round defeat of Conor McGregor on August 26, 2017. And now, according to BJPenn, it has been quietly announced that the 50-0 boxer will be making his mixed martial arts debut against kickboxing prodigy, Tenshin Nasukawa at RIZIN 14 in Tokyo, Japan’s prized Saitama Super Arena on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2018.

The exhibition fight will officially be announced by RIZIN at a press conference via the brand’s YouTube channel that is currently in the process of being organized. Both Mayweather and Nasukawa will be present at this press conference.

This news comes as somewhat of a surprise being that in the past Mayweather has boasted in the past that he would be entering the realm of mixed martial arts. Yet, nobody in the fighting world knew exactly when this would take place. Majority of the fighting realm that Mayweather would be taking on the likes of Conor McGregor in the octagon. Khabib Nurmagomedov even to offer his services of taking on the undefeated world champion boxer after defeating McGregor at UFC 229. Now, it looks like Floyd has made a deal to take on the number eight bantamweight in the world in Nasukawa.

Who Is Tenshin Nasukawa?

For those of you unaware of who Tenshin Nasukawa is, yet consider yourself a combat sports enthusiasts, you will find yourself pleasantly surprised. Nasukawa is a 20-year-old kickboxing expert who is currently the RISE Featherweight World Champion. Nasukawa has a kickboxing record of 27-0, 21 by TKO and a mixed martial arts record of 4-0, two by knockout, one by submission, and the last by decision.

The Matsudo, Japan-bred bruiser stylistically fights southpaw utilizing a combination of kickboxing and full-contact karate as combat methods. By the tender of age of 18-years-old, Nasukawa had amassed an amateur record of 99-5. Check out some of his fighting highlights in the video above.

Floyd Mayweather vs Tenshin Nasukawa

This particular matchup will be interesting especially being that the general public is unaware of the skillset Floyd Mayweather has in the mixed martial arts realm. What we do know is that he is arguably the best defensive boxer of all-time and has the ability to easily strike his opponents with his counter-punching technique. But will this be enough to defeat the fast-striking Nasukawa in his MMA debut?

Nasukawa is extremely agile and has an insane arsenal of kicking options under his belt. Not to mention, he does have very quick hands for someone who isn’t reliant on his boxing ability. However, he is undersized and his conditioning can become a factor when fighting an opponent like Mayweather who likes to tire his opposition out.

With that said, it is guaranteed that Floyd Mayweather and Tenshin Nasukawa will be facing off to end the year at RIZIN 14 in Tokyo, Japan. Who do you think will be the victor?

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