Floyd Mayweather backs out of fight against Tenshin Nasukawa claiming he was ‘misled’
- Boxing legend says he only agreed to non-televised exhibition for ‘wealthy spectators’
- Says he was ‘blindsided’ by development of negotiations to face 20-year-old
Floyd Mayweather has suddenly backtracked on a proposed New Year’s Eve fight against Japanese kickboxing sensation Tenshin Nasukawa.
The unbeaten American boxing legend claimed he was “completely blindsided” by the development of negotiations when he flew in to Tokyo for Monday’s press conference.
Mayweather and the 20-year-old had posed for pictures earlier this week when they announced a shock bout would take place in Saitama, a commuter town just outside the Japanese capital, on December 31.
“First and foremost, I want it to be clear that I, Floyd Mayweather, never agreed to an official bout with Tenshin Nasukawa,” the 41-year-old said. “In fact (with all due respect) I have never heard of him until this recent trip to Japan.”
No rule set had yet been announced though Mayweather claimed he was asked to take part in a nine minute exhibition of three rounds with an opponent selected by Japanese MMA organisation Rizin Fighting Federation.