Oh, you thought the Floyd Mayweather vs. Tenshin Nasukawa “the fight is on, the fight is off” saga was over? Well it looks like the “fight” may be back on, if you’re to believe the boxing legend.
Mayweather was interviewed by TMZ, and just days after his recent statement that he was misled by RIZIN and never agreed to face the Japanese kickboxing star, Floyd says that they’re “going to make it happen” as a co-promotional venture between Mayweather Promotions and RIZIN. Oh yes, and kicks won’t be an option for Tenshin.
“It’s gonna be a little boxing exhibition,” Mayweather said. “No kicking. No kicking at all. I’m moving around with the guy for nine minutes. And of course it’s gonna be the highest paid exhibition ever.”
“Just for promoting this event so far, I’ve made seven figures,” he noted earlier in the video.
“Money” Mayweather also denied that money problems were the reason behind his interest in competing in Japan, even for a mere boxing exhibition that would only last a few minutes.
“Everybody talking about I’m fighting a small guy,” he said. “People don’t understand. Even when people are like, ‘Floyd fights because he needs money.’ It’s more like this: Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Oprah, they still go out there and do different things and get paid financially great. Like I said before, I’m far from hurting for money. I got a ton of money.”
Nasukawa is an undefeated 20-year-old phenom in the sport of kickboxing, and earlier this year he engaged in a kickboxing battle with RIZIN FF bantamweight champion Kyoji Horiguchi, winning by unanimous decision.
So for those of you who still care about this story and would like to see an exhibition fight between a retired boxer and a rising superstar in kickboxing... there’s hope yet!