Floyd Mayweather to attend RIZIN New Year's Eve party in Japan

After spending nearly a year teasing an MMA battle in the UFC against Conor McGregor or Khabib Nurmagomedov, Floyd Mayweather is turning to Asia where he will face the Rizin Combat Federation. The Japanese promotion, led by many leading officials of PRIDE FC, was announced at a press conference Monday morning by RIZIN President Nobuyuki Sakakibara.

Mayweather will face Tenshin Nasukawa, the undefeated boxer 27-0, in what is called a Super Challenge bout. In the publication, RIZIN did not ask us if it was about a boxing fight or kick-boxing. RIZIN advised us to "stay tuned" for news on the rules. No agreement on weight has been reached yet. Hmmm.

Tenshin has just won a kickboxing win over Kyoji Horiguchi in the RIZIN.13 main event at the end of September. Floyd Mayweather's last fight took place against UFC star Conor McGregor and brought him more than $ 100 million.

Mayweather called the agreement a start for an expansion of its operations in Japan.

"I want to continue to build my relationship with Money Team Tokyo," he said. "I want to keep coming here and bring other fighters here so that my business can continue to grow and RIZIN can continue to grow. I would like to continue working with RIZIN because the latter is an amazing company. My company has launched huge fights in the United States, but we look forward to bringing the Mayweather Promotions banner and the TMT banner to the world. And if you have to work with a great guy like this, there is no problem.

"We put this in place very quickly, but with great professionalism," said Brett Johnson of ONE Entertainment, who, according to Mayweather, was instrumental in reaching the deal. "And we look forward to keeping this together for the rest of our term, no matter how many years it can be."

"Nobody has defeated my opponent in the past, and I would like to be the man of history," Tenshin said. "My punch can change the story, and I'll show it to you, so stay tuned."

Here is the full press release on the fight:

TENSHIN NASUKAWA RELIES ON FLOYD MAY TO RICE 14

Tenshin Nasukawa (27-0, KB) has become one of the most popular fighters in Japanand perhaps the best prospect of combat sports the country has ever seen. Between MMA fights and kickboxing, Tenshin fought more than thirty times despite his past 20 years a little over two months ago. The flow RISE Champion Featherweight, Tenshin began to make a name for himself with victories over the likes of Amnat Ruenroeng and Wanchalong PK Saenchai in the KNOCK OUT promotion on Thailand.

Since these victories, Nasukawa became a massive star under the Rizin banner. Win four dominant victories in mixed martial arts, beating several men to be crowned 2017 RIZIN KICK Tournament Champion, and more recently pointing out fellow superstar Kyoji Horiguchi in the biggest fight the Saitama Super Arena never seen. Tenshinhas a revenge with Taiki Naito at RISE 129 later this month.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. (50-0, BX) has a legitimate case as the best boxer of all time, and he has the record to back it up. After winning a bronze medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Mayweather turned pro and never looked back. Over the years, he's solidified to become the biggest fight in combat sports, deserving his nickname. "Money" in every sense of the word.

The legendary foreman has too much praise to name. Mayweather holds many boxing titles under WBO, WBA,and WBCto name a few. The five-division champion overcame the likes of Ricky Hatton, Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Marcos Maidana, and Andre Berto. He has also won victories in some of the most financially successful pay-per-view events, against Oscar De La Hoya, Canelo Alvarez, Manny Pacquiaoand more recently UFC Super star Conor McGregor.

Despite being 41 years old, "Money" has never slowed down. And he is expected to bring his talents to Japan for the first time to take on the amazing phenomenon known as "Teppen" Tenshin. Stay tuned for future battle rules and other card games.

RICE 14 is scheduled for December 31, 2018, live from the famous Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.