A boxer humiliated by Floyd Mayweather in one round has fought back to be ranked by the World Boxing Council.
Tenshin Nasukawa, who battled Mayweather in his first-ever boxing bout at the age of 20 in 2018, was a successful kickboxer at the time. He remains undefeated in that code at a startling 44-0.
However, after sharing the ring with Mayweather, albeit for only one round – as the legend pulverized Tenshin, the Japanese star turned to professional boxing full-time in 2023.
He’s since won three bouts in a row, including a January 2024 victory over the world-rated Luis Robles Pacheco. That triumph gave the WBC impetus to rate Tenshin at super bantamweight.
Floyd Mayweather humbling for Tenshin
Nasukawa entered the WBC Rating System at number 21, having been impressive since the humbling by Mayweather. On New Year’s Eve five years ago, Nasukawa agreed to face Mayweather in a RIZIN exhibition. The result wasn’t his best despite gaining valuable experience.
Mayweather dropped Tenshin three times. The five-weight champion humiliated the youngster in front of his own people before ‘Money” ended the fight before too much damage was done.
Credit has to go to Tenshin for dusting himself down and embarking on an impressive winning run in kickboxing and then boxing. He can now challenge for a WBC title with one more win.
WBC Ratings
Meanwhile, the WBC issued a “Thank You” message to all this month’s new entries to the Ratings, which included the young kickboxing superstar.
“The World Boxing Council wishes to recognize and congratulate the boxers who entered the February 2024 ratings based on their efforts and results. The WBC ratings have been published month by month since 1968. They consist of the top 40 boxers from all divisions.
“The rating committee comprises a director, an assistant director, an executive secretary, and 22 experts, experienced members from many nations worldwide.
“This committee is dedicated to compiling the results of fights and essential information to carry out a thorough, detailed, and comprehensive analysis of the fighters’ achievements to define their position in the WBC’s lists.
“We welcome and congratulate the warriors who entered the WBC rankings this month. We wish them the best of success in their future fights.”
Heavyweight contenders Luis Ortiz and Michael Hunter were among those who reappeared. There were also places for Abdullah Mason at lightweight and ex-world champion Artem Dalakian in the flyweight division.
Phil Jay is an experienced boxing news writer and has been the Editor of World Boxing News since 2010.
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