The kickboxer who failed to go one round with Floyd Mayweather is ready to begin his quest in the code he struggled with against a great.
Tenshin Nasukawa lost miserably to Mayweather on New Year’s Eve of 2018. Dropped three times, the Japanese star was way out of his league.
Dusting himself down, Nasukawa went back to kickboxing. He still holds one of the most impressive in the sport at 44-0.
Nasukawa began his pro kickboxing career when he was only 15. He’s since compiled an unbeaten record in more than 40 fights.
Nasukawa also competed in mixed martial arts, but he has always maintained a strong interest in boxing.
Floyd Mayweather loss
The 24-year-old will always be remembered for his boxing exhibition against Mayweather. He now tries his hand at the real thing on April 8. The fight will mark his first official professional outing.
A five-fight card sees the multi-division kickboxing world champion face Yuki Yonaha in a six-round super bantamweight attraction.
Yonaha (12-4-1, 8 KOs) is a nine-year veteran who is Japan’s fourth-ranked bantamweight. The 32-year-old is 5-1 in his last six fights.
On the night, three light flyweight world titles will be on the line at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
Teraji vs Gonzalez
WBC/WBA champion Kenshiro Teraji and WBO champ Jonathan Gonzalez will collide in a twelve-round battle that will put one man closer to becoming the division’s undisputed king.
Teraji (20-1, 12 KOs) captured his first world title by defeating Ganigan Lopez for the WBC 108-pound strap. He made eight defenses before losing the belt via 10th-round TKO to Masamichi Yabuki.
The 31-year-old avenged the loss by stopping Yabuki in the third round of their rematch to regain the title.
Teraji notched his most impressive victory last November by stopping Hiroto Kyoguchi in the seventh round to unify the WBC and WBA championships.
Gonzalez (27-3-1, 14 KOs) spent years fighting top opposition at flyweight. This included a failed challenge for Kosei Tanaka’s WBO world title in 2019.
The slick southpaw is unbeaten in five fights since moving down to light flyweight in 2020.
In October 2021, Gonzalez upset Elwin Soto for the WBO title, which he defended last year against Mark Anthony Barriga and Shokichi Iwata.
Further action sees Takuma Inoue vs. Liborio Solis in a twelve-round bout for the vacant WBA bantamweight title.
The younger brother of pound-for-pound phenom Naoya Inoue has won four straight fights since challenging Nordine Oubaali for the WBC crown.
Solis, a former junior bantamweight world champion, will make his fifth attempt at a bantamweight world title.
Veteran Kiko Martinez appears in a collision with Reiya Abe. The fight will be an IBF eliminator.
Teraji-Gonzalez, Nasukawa-Yonaha, and additional bouts will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. in the early morning hours on ESPN+.
