RIZIN 15 Full Report

RIZIN made their second appearance in Yokohama this Sunday. The card had tons of action, so let’s look at how it went down.

Bout 1: Thalison Ferreira (14-2) vs. Taiga (19-7-1) (134 lbs) (Kickboxing Rules)

After RIZIN’s traditional show opening where every fighter was introduced, we had our first fight. The first bout on the card was a kickboxing battle between Thalison Ferreira and Taiga. Taiga has fought in RIZIN before, fighting to a draw at RIZIN 13. Thalison Ferreira had a very intense and long walkout. Both guys were fighting at a fast tempo throughout the first round. Ferreira kept trying for a spinning back fist. With under 20 seconds left in the round, Ferreira was hit with a knee to the body, causing a knockdown. He barely escaped the round. His team was very late for leaving the ring after the first round. Taiga was dropped at the start of round two from an overhand right but recovered. Another overhand that was landed maybe a minute later took Taiga down once again. Ferreira saw red at this point and was fully on the offense. Taiga went down after a jab with under 30 seconds left, causing the referee to end the bout.

Bout 2: Kanako Murata (8-1) vs. Saray Orozco (4-2) (126 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

The second bout was Kanako Murata filling in for Shinju Nozawa-Auclair, facing Saray Orozco. Early in the fight Murata took it to the ground, landing a takedown. They got back up after Murata landed some strikes on the ground. Murata did another takedown and started trying for a guillotine. In general, Murata had the upper hand on the ground, but wasn’t completely dominant. After Murata picked up Orozco and put her down, she put in a von flue choke, which made the fight end via referee stoppage. As usual for Murata, she threw around her cornermen and cornerwomen after the bout.

Bout 3: Seiichiro Ito (12-2-2) vs. Manel Kape (12-4) (128 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

In the next fight, longtime ZST fighter Seiichiro Ito fought Manel Kape. Kape had a new look, wearing long pants and shoes in the ring. Within the first minute of the bout, Ito was hit in the groin with a shoe. Kape landed a good takedown in the second minute. Ito had a takedown attempt denied near the end of the round. Kape started to amp up his striking in the second round. There we many moments where Ito was in full defensive mode. From punches to spinning back fists, to grounded knees, Kape was hitting all of his spots in the second round. With a minute left, the referee stepped in to end the fight, giving Kape the stoppage victory. After the fight he dedicated the fight to his mother.

Bout 4: Koji Takeda (8-0) vs. Damien Brown (18-12) (157 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

After his successful performance at New Year’s Eve, Damien Brown returned to face Koji Takeda. The first round was only stand-up, with Damien Brown having a great round. In-between rounds, Yusuke Yachi was spotted in the crowd. Takeda held onto Brown’s back for a portion of the second round. After an amazing scramble, they went back to kickboxing. Brown seemed to be more dominant in the striking. Takanori Gomi was spotted in the crowd during the second break. Early in the final round, there was a pause due to Brown getting poked in the eye. Takeda was completely defensive in the closing minutes of the fight. This became the first fight of the night to go it’s scheduled distance, with Brown winning via unanimous decision.

Bout 5: Kana Watanabe (6-0-1) vs. Justyna Zofia Haba (1-0) (126 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

It was a battle of undefeated fighters in the next match when Kana Watanabe battled Justyna Zofia Haba. After a few minutes of stand-up, Watanabe did a trip to take it to the ground. Watanabe landed some forearms on the ground before the round ended. Kana Asakura and KING Reina were shown on the broadcast in-between rounds. In the second round there was a stoppage for Watanabe’s nose to be checked by a doctor. Miyuu Yamamoto and AI Shimizu were seen in the crowd before the third round started. From the ground, Watanabe was landing tons of strikes in the final round. Her nose was bleeding quite a bit during this. The fight went the distance, with the final round being the most dominant for Watanabe. The judges gave Watanabe the nod via unanimous decision.

Bout 6: Mikuru Asakura (9-1) vs. Luiz Gustavo (9-0) (150 lbs) (No Elbows Allowed)

In what is a great fight to have before intermission, Luiz Gustavo fought Mikuru Asakura. Gustavo landed a hard kick to the head early into the fight. Asakura landed a takedown shortly after. They were stood up after nothing happened on the ground. The referee stopped the fight after Asakura claimed an eye poke. After a doctor extensively checked him out the fight resumed. Back on the ground, Gustavo put in a guillotine but was broken as they almost fully got out of the ring. At the start of the second round, Asakura did a good kick to the ribs. Gustavo jumped into a takedown after trying to do a kick. When back on their feet, Asakura and Gustavo got into a swinging battle. Gustavo got dropped from a right hand but recovered and was taken down moments later. Gustavo got fully out of the ring while Asakura was on top, forcing a break. This caused Gustavo to be given a yellow card. The final minute was more powerful strikes from both fighters. In the third round Gustavo started to bleed from the left eye. The final round was the most intense as both guys were swinging for the fences. Asakura did a takedown with over a minute left, but Gustavo backed out of the ring again. Both fighters survived all three rounds. The judges gave Mikuru Asakura the unanimous win.

Bout 7: RENA (7-2) vs. Samantha Jean-Francois (4-5) (112 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

After the first intermission ended, RENA faced Samantha Jean-Francois in a match that was originally scheduled for New Year’s Eve. This time around RENA was able to survive the weight cut, so the fight went through. Francois was wearing wrestling shoes for this match. After clinching for a little in the first, RENA threw Francois onto the ground, but got immediately reversed. Francois did a trip shortly after, with RENA attempting an armbar from the bottom position. Francois escaped the armbar, going back into a standing clinch in the corner. RENA tried for a judo throw, but Francois sort of collapsed on her and assumed top position on the ground. Francois tried for a rear naked choke but couldn’t find it as the round ended. RENA landed some good stand-up shots at the start of the second, but was taken down shortly after. RENA tried for an armbar and got slammed by Francois but kept ahold of the move. They found themselves in a stalemate as RENA stood up and Francois stayed on the ground. RENA dove down for a punch, but stood back up shortly after. The referee stood Francois up this time. Francois landed another takedown but RENA reversed it using momentum. From top mount, RENA started to land strikes. After some hammer fist strikes, RENA tried for more submission moves. The round ended in this position. In RENA’s corner, she got her coach to slap her in the face with both hands before the final round started. In the final round, Francois landed a takedown but RENA fought her way into the top position. They got stood up after being in that position for a few minutes. RENA defended a takedown successfully in the final minute, taking top position once again from it. In a north south position, RENA landed some knee strikes to the head. The fight went the full distance. All three judges gave RENA the victory.

Bout 8: Karl Albrektsson (8-2) vs. Christiano Frolich (10-4) (205 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

In a Light Heavyweight bout, Karl Albrektsson fought Christiano Frolich next. Albrektsson had a huge height advantage over Frolich. In the first minute, Albrektsson landed a left kick to the body that dropped Frohlich and echoed throughout the building. That exchange brought the fight to the ground. Albrektsson was dominant with strikes on the ground. Albrektsson was dropped by punches in the final ten seconds, possibly being saved by the bell. The second round had an emphasis on kickboxing. In the first minute of the final round, Albrektsson landed a takedown that almost made Frohlich fall out of the ring. Despite landing this, since they went out of the ring he lost the position. Albrektsson got a top position on the ground and landed tons of strikes. The fight went the distance, with Albrektsson winning via scorecards.

Bout 9: Satoru Kitaoka (42-18-9) vs. Roberto Satoshi Souza (7-0) (156 lbs) (No Elbows Allowed)

Veteran JMMA fighter Satoru Kitaoka faced BJJ ace Roberto Satoshi Souza in the next bout. This was Kitaoka’s 70th pro MMA fight. After some striking, Kitaoka had a guillotine on that Souza rolled out of. Souza got a large cut on his head which cause a break in the bout. After a somewhat contained battle, both guys let their hands fly for a few seconds in the final minute. Kitaoka got a takedown early in the second. The fight was stopped once again, this time to look at a cut on Kitaoka’s head. The fight continued, with Souza landing some good combos of punches before Kitaoka shot for another takedown. Kitaoka tried for a leg lock on the ground (a move that got him put to sleep against Diego Brandao). Souza reversed the move into a rear naked choke and then a triangle choke. Kitaoka was able to escape the predicament. They were stood up after a bit of inactivity on the ground. They started to trade strikes, with Kitaoka being dropped after numerous strikes, and was hit a few more times before the referee dove in. Souza had an emotional speech after the fight, talking about how he watched PRIDE as a kid, and how this was a dream come true.

Bout 10: Kyoji Horiguchi (26-2) vs. Ben Nguyen (16-8) (132 lbs) (Elbows Allowed)

The first of three huge fights on the card was RIZIN’s star Kyoji Horiguchi facing Ben Nguyen. The crowd was very electric for this fight. Nguyen was wearing shoes in the ring. Right off the bat, Nguyen was the aggressor. He got onto Horiguchi’s back while he was standing, but was taken out of the position after Horiguchi spun. They clinched up against the ropes for a while. Horiguchi started to land some good hooks. Nguyen stopped being the fight who was pushing the pace as he stated getting tagged. Nguyen was dropped twice, and after being hit in the corner many times, the referee stepped in and concluded the bout. After the fight, Nobuyuki Sakakibara got in the ring and asked Horiguchi if he wants to fight on Bellator’s Madison Square Garden card. The implication was that Horiguchi would face Darrion Caldwell for his Bellator Championship.

Bout 11: Tenshin Nasukawa (29-0) vs. Fritz Biagtan (12-3) (130 lbs) (Kickboxing Rules)

After the second intermission ended, Manny Pacquiao came to the ring and thanked everyone for the opportunity to be here, and for his kickboxer Fritz Biagtan to fight Tenshin Nasukawa. He took a seat at ringside for the fight. The first round was very methodical, with both guys having a feeling out process. There was a pause due to Nasukawa getting un-intentionally hit in the groin. Biagtan was landing strikes in the second round, but it felt like Nasukawa was controlling the bout. In the final minute of the second round, there was a moment where Biagtan was spun into a corner and then hit a few times clean on the chin. In the final round, Nasukawa started to really egg on with strikes. He landed a knockdown after a knee to the body. With another knee only second laster, Nasukawa got a second knockdown and a victory. He did the Street Fighter “Hadouken” pose after winning.

Bout 12: King Mo (21-8) vs. Jiri Prochazka (23-3-1) (Light Heavyweight Title Match) (Elbows Allowed)

In the main event of RIZIN 15, Jiri Prochazka and King Mo fought to become the first ever RIZIN Light Heavyweight Champion. Like many people tonight, King Mo fought in shoes. Before the main event happened, the Czech Republic and United States National Anthems were played. Despite being a championship bout, it was only scheduled for three rounds. The first round of the fight felt very slow, and while Prochazka landed some, it wasn’t a huge round for him. There was a pause in the action when a doctor had to check on a cut around Prochazka’s left eye. Prochazka was more aggressive than King Mo in this round. With two minutes left in the final round, Prochazka started to land head strikes, dropping King Mo and eventually closing out the fight. Jiri Prochazka is RIZIN’s first Light Heavyweight Champion.

With RIZIN’s evening of fights concluded, we look to the future. RIZIN is scheduled to have their next event on June 2nd in Kobe, Japan, making it the promotion’s debut in the city. It will be in World Memorial Hall, a venue that has 8,000 seats in it. No fights are booked for the event yet, but once we edge closer to the date some bouts are eventually going to be announced.

RIZIN 15 Preview

On Sunday RIZIN will return with their first event of 2019. Their last event was the classic New Year’s Eve MMA event being held in Saitama Super Arena. The show saw kickboxing star Tenshin Nasukawa lose within a round of boxing to the 50-0 Floyd Mayweather. The loss went viral, as did Mayweather’s reported nine million dollar paycheck did. The show also saw the crowing of Kyoji Horiguchi and Ayaka Hamasaki as champions. Horiguchi defeated Bellator star Darrion Caldwell via submission to become a Bantamweight Champion, and Hamasaki beat Kanna Asakura with a second-round armbar to become a Super Atomweight Champion.

This weekend’s show will be headlined by Jiri Prochazka and Bellator’s King Mo, as they compete for the inagural RIZIN Heavyweight Championship. Below them on the card will also be RIZIN regulars Kyoji Horiguchi and Tenshin Nasukawa.

RIZIN 15 will see inaugural promotion’s return to Yokohama, with their last appearance being in April of 2017. With the order of this weekend’s card being unveiled this week, let’s preview the card in order.

Taiga vs. Thalisson Gomes Ferreira (Kickboxing Bout)

The first fight of the evening is contested under kickboxing rules, as Taiga returns to face RIZIN newcomer Thailisson Gomes Ferreria. Taiga competed at RIZIN 13, where he fought to a draw against Kento Haraguchi. Both fighters are coming off of losses from the RISE kickboxing promotion.

Kanako Murata vs. Saray Orozco

The matchup of Kanako Murata and Saray Orozco only became official this week when Orozco’s original opponent, Shinju Nozawa-Auclair backed out of the bout due to injury. Nozawa-Auclair noted on Instagram that she fought through an injury before, and it forced her to be sidelined for a year after the fight because of the severity of the injury afterwards. Kanako Murata is no newcomer to RIZIN as she has an established 4-1 record within the fighting federation. Saray Orozco has a 4-2 professional MMA record and is on a three-fight win streak heading into her battle in Yokohama.

Seiichiro Ito vs. Manel Kape

Manel Kape is an example of someone who RIZIN has really built up. Prior to his career within RIZIN, he didn’t compete in any major promotions. Although RIZIN has made him into a huge star, he hasn’t had an easy run. Out of his last four career losses, he has been given three of them in his last four fights. He lost to Ulka Sasaki on New Year’s Eve back when he was coming off a win against Yusaku Nakamura. He’ll be facing Seiichiro Ito in his next fight. Ito will be making his second RIZIN appearance, getting a win at the last Yokohama show. He’s a veteran within the ZST promotion in Japan and is coming off his first MMA loss in over five years.

Koji Takeda vs. Damien Brown

Damien Brown had a strong debut with RIZIN at New Year’s Eve after wrapping up his 2-4 UFC career. He defeated RIZIN veteran Daron Cruickshank via guillotine in just one round. He faces Koji Takeda, a DEEP promotion fighter who, despite only debuting in 2017, has racked up eight victories. His last win came against Satoru Kitaoka, who also fights on this card.

Kana Watanabe vs. Justyna Zofia Haba

Justyna Zofia Haba and Kana Watanabe are two success stories that came from the New Year’s Eve shows. Watanabe defeated Shizuka Sugiyama in 11 seconds after a knockdown (which Sugiyama protested about after the match) in their sequel fight, and Haba handed Shinju Nozawa-Auclair her first pro loss via submission. Watanabe’s fight came from RIZIN’s afternoon show “RIZIN Heisei’s Last Yarennoka!” Since then she has also gotten her either pro victory at DEEP JEWELS 23, defeating Soo Min Kang. While Watanabe isn’t a veteran by any means, her 8-0-1 record is many more minutes in the sport than what Haba has experienced in her 1-0 pro MMA career.

Mikuru Asakura vs. Luis Gustavo

This weekend’s show was set to be a showcase of both of the Asakura brothers, but couldn’t happen after Kai Asakura’s fight fell through. After Ulka Sasaki and Justin Scoggins both pulled out due to injury, RIZIN decided to bench Kai for the event. Mikuru’s bout is still set to happen, as he faces Luis Gustavo. The undefeated Brazilian left an impact in his debut in RIZIN when he dropped Yusuke Yachi in the main event of RIZIN 12. Mikuru defeated Shooto veteran Takeshi Inoue at the “Heisei’s Last Yarennoka” show on NYE.

RENA vs. Samantha Jean-Francois

A bout that was set to go down at RIZIN 14 will be tried for again at this event. Samantha Jean-Francois didn’t have an opponent last minute in December due to RENA suffering from anemia and dehydration during her weight cut. The last fight took place at 49 kg, and this fight will be held at 51 kg.

Karl Albrektsson vs. Christiano Frolich

Karl Albrektsson will make his return to RIZIN, facing Christiano Frolich, who will make his debut in the promotion. Albrektsson’s last fight in RIZIN was against Jiri Prochazka, losing in the first round via punches. Since then he has gotten two more wins in the Swedish promotion “Superior Challenge,” making his record 8-2. Frolich comes into RIZIN with a 10-4 record, with his last fight being a win in July against Eduardo Rufino.

Roberto de Souza vs. Satoru Kitaoka

Nearly two decades into his MMA career, Satoru Kitaoka is still fighting frequently. After defeating Tatsuya Kawajiri on New Year’s Eve, Kitaoka will face Roberto de Souza in his next battle. Souza is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu based MMA fighter, having presence in Japan through his participation in QUINTET events.

Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Ben Nguyen

RIZIN’s top MMA dog Kyoji Horiguchi will face former UFC fighter Ben Nguyen in his next fight. Horiguchi is coming off a championship victory in December. Nguyen will be making his first appearance outside the UFC after he first fought for them in 2015. At the end of his stint with the promotion, he lost two fights, finishing with a UFC record of 4-3. This fight won’t be for a title, and will only be three rounds.

Tenshin Nasukawa vs. Fritz Aldin Biagtan

Tenshin Nasukawa’s recent fights seemingly follow a theme of being involved with people who don’t have much to do with kickboxing. At RIZIN 13, he fought Kyoji Horiguchi in a kickboxing match. At RIZIN 14, he lost to Floyd Mayweather in boxing after being knocked down three times. And now at RIZIN 15, Nasukawa will face a kickboxer that has been brought in through famous boxer Manny Pacquiao. Fritz Aldin Biagtan was the fighter that “Pac-Man” assigned for the event. The Filipino fighter is a current WBC Muay Thai Featherweight Champion and will be facing Nasukawa in Kickboxing rules. Nasukawa’s last fight was last month at RISE, competing in the first round of the promotion’s 58kg tournament.

King Mo vs. Jiri Prochazka (RIZIN Heavyweight Championship Match)

RIZIN will have their first Heavyweight Championship match in the main event of the show. Muhammed Lawal, also known as King Mo will come into the promotion from Bellator to face Jiri Prochazka. Prochazka is currently on a seven-fight win streak, defeating Brandon Halsey in December. He has fought for RIZIN since their inaugural event. This won’t be the first time he’s squared off against Mo, as he took his third and most recent loss to him back in 2015 via punches. King Mo has lost his last two fights, both being via strikes. In RIZIN he has a record of 3-1.

After RIZIN makes it’s long-awaited return to Yokohama, the promotion will make their debut in Kobe afterwards. On the 2nd of June, RIZIN will go to the World Memorial Hall for RIZIN 16. But until then, there are 12 bouts that have the potential to be very entertaining.

RIZIN 14 Preview

With their traditional New Year’s Eve event this year, RIZIN is putting a focus on the North American market. There are three main ways that they are doing this: by having lots of recent UFC fighters in action, by having a collaboration fight with Bellator Champion Darrion Caldwell, and by giving young kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa fight in an exhibition boxing match against Floyd Mayweather. The initial promotion of this event had a bump in the road, as after an initial press conference, Mayweather took to Instagram to say that he was mislead and that he has backed out of the bout. Since then things have seemingly been worked out between the boxer and the promoter Nobuyuki Sakakibara, since the fight is back on.

The official ruleset will be pure boxing, with no scorecards after the scheduled three rounds. The fight will also not affect anyone’s professional records. Nasukawa, the undefeated kickboxer, showed up in Nevada for on open workout at Mayweather’s gym earlier this month. This will be the second fight in a row for Tenshin where he is fighting a crossover bout. In September he battle RIZIN’s MMA star Kyoji Horiguchi in a kickboxing match. Nasukawa trained in Nevada leading up to this fight with boxer Jorge Linares.

There are two championship bouts on this card, with the biggest one being between Darrion Caldwell and Kyoji Horiguchi. Caldwell is a champion in Bellator, but won’t be defending his belt. Instead, he will face Horiguchi for the inaugural RIZIN Bantamweight Championship. The fight is expected to be only the start of a collaboration between the two promotions. Horiguchi has been undefeated in MMA since joining RIZIN. Putting that together with his final UFC fights, he is currently on a 10 fight win streak.

The biggest women’s fight on the card is Kanna Asakura defending her RIZIN Atomweight Championship against Ayaka Hamasaki. Hamasaki is 2-0 after making the move from Invicta to RIZIN. Asakura’s first title fight was against RENA, who she also defeated once before. Hamasaki’s last win was against Mina Kurobe, who was at the time the DEEP Jewels Atomweight Champion. The story going into that RIZIN 13 fight was it was two champions (Kurobe had her DEEP JEWELS belt and Hamasaki was a former Invicta champion) fighting, with the winner challenging Asakura.

After Norifumi “KID” Yamamoto unfortunately passed away in September, three Krazy Bee fighters were booked on this show. One of the fighters was Yusuke Yachi, who was highlighted on RIZIN’s web-docuseries “RIZIN Confessions.” On the show it was shown that Yachi is on a road to redemption. Before fighting in RIZIN he spent time in Shooto and Pancrase. From 2016 to 2018 Yachi was on a tear, getting five wins with three of them being first round stoppages. His momentum was halted at RIZIN 12 when he lost to Luis Gustavo. Part of his loss came because of his long hair getting in his eyes during the fight. On the web series he teased that he might go bald for NYE. He is set to face Johnny Case, who had a short stint in PFL after being released from the UFC.

Norifumi’s sister, Miyuu Yamamoto is also in action. The wrestler only delved into MMA in 2016, currently holding an even record of 3-3. She is set to face Mika Nagano, who is a veteran of the DEEP JEWELS promotion, making her RIZIN debut. Her son, Erson Yamamoto is scheduled to make his return to MMA after a round one loss to Manel Kape back in 2017. He looks to break even with his pro MMA record when he challenges Kazuyuki Miyata. Miyata is also coming off a long layoff, with his last fight being in 2016, defeating Andy Souwer in the first round of a Bushido Rules fight.

On the card there are three fights where RIZIN is feeding fighters to the promotions talent. These three bouts are an attempt to put RENA, Gabi Garcia and Shinju Nozawa-Auclair into the spotlight. In RENA’s case, her fight is a way to bounce back from the two losses she received from Kanna Asakura in her last two RIZIN fights. She is matched up against Samantha Jean-Francois, who has a professional record of 3-5-0. Nozawa-Auclair is clearly being built up as a star in the promotion since her mother, Naoko Nozawa is a well known Japanese comedian. In her first two RIZIN bouts she got first round Armbar victories, with one of the wins avenging her only amateur MMA loss. She fights Justyna Zofia Haba. Haba hasn’t had a professional MMA fight, and had her one amateur win back in 2014. Now longtime RIZIN fighter Gabi Garcia returns after a Road FC win back in the Spring. She fights Barbara Nepomuceno, a kickboxer making her MMA debut.

Former UFC fighter Damien Brown will be welcomed into the promotion by Daron Cruickshank. Also a former UFC competitor, Cruickshank has made himself known in RIZIN as a fighter who doesn’t rely on scorecards to win the bout. Currently on a four fight winning streak, Cruickshank has a 6-2 record in the promotion, all via stoppage. Brown’s run in UFC ended after he lost three fights in a row, exiting the promotion with a 2-4 record.

In a similar situation, former UFC Flyweight Ulka Sasaki will make his RIZIN debut against young fighter Manel Kape. Kape is currently bouncing back from two losses in a row, as he put on a dominant performance against Yusaku Nakamura at RIZIN 13. At age 25 he seems like a young prospect for the promotion. Sasaki had a 50/50 sort of run in the UFC, with his last fight being just last month against Alexandre Pantoja at Fight Night 140.

The fight between Nobumitsu Osawa and Tofik Masaev will be a battle of the newcomers. Osawa has been a fighter for the Shooto promotion for all of his career, and comes into RIZIN on a three fight win streak. Masaev is a fighter with an impressive 13-3 record, which has been collected from fights in China, Turkey and Azerbaijan, among other places.

For a couple of years now, Yuki Motoya has went back and forth between RIZIN and his main promotion DEEP. Currently on a four fight win streak, including one of them being at RIZIN 12, he will face Justin Scoggins. Scoggins is, like many people on this card, a former UFC fighter coming into the promotion. He had a three fight losing streak in the UFC, with one of those losses coming from the previously mentioned Ulka Sasaki.

Back in 2015 Jiri Prochazka joined RIZIN. Since then he has been a regular for the promotion, only losing one of his nine fights. He is currently on a six fight winning streak and is set to battle Brandon Halsey, who competed in PFL Season 1.

The prequel to the evening’s events, “RIZIN Heisei’s Last Yarennoka!,” kicks off in the late evening on the west. The headliner for that show is veteran fighters Tatsuya Kawajiri and Satoru Kitaoka. In Japan the show will be televised on Fuji TV, and in the rest of the world it can be seen via purchase on FITE TV. The 14 fight show is one that will be the main focus of the MMA world before we all say goodbye to 2018, and welcome the new year.

Floyd Mayweather Claims He Never Agreed To Fight Tenshin Nasukawa

Days after a press conference in Japan, Floyd Mayweather has claimed that he never agreed to fight on RIZIN’s New Year’s Eve card against Tenshin Nasukawa. On Instagram on Wednesday Mayweather made a lengthy Instagram post where he detailed his side of the story. The full statement reads:

“Now that I am back on U.S. soil after a long and disappointing trip to Tokyo, I now have the time to address you, my fans and the media in regard to the upcoming event on December 31st that was recently announced. First and foremost, I want it to be clear that I, Floyd Mayweather, never agreed to an official bout with Tenshin Nasukawa. In fact (with all due respect) I have never heard of him until this recent trip to Japan. Ultimately, I was asked to participate in a 9 minute exhibition of 3 rounds with an opponent selected by the “Rizen Fighting Federation”. What I was originally informed of by Brent Johnson of “One Entertainment” was that this was to be an exhibition put on for a small group of wealthy spectators for a very large fee. This exhibition was previously arranged as a “Special Bout” purely for entertainment purposes with no intentions of being represented as an official fight card nor televised worldwide. Once I arrived to the press conference, my team and I were completely derailed by the new direction this event was going and we should have put a stop to it immediately. I want to sincerely apologize to my fans for the very misleading information that was announced during this press conference and I can assure you that I too was completely blindsided by the arrangements that were being made without my consent nor approval. For the sake of the several fans and attendees that flew in from all parts of the world to attend this past press conference, I was hesitant to create a huge disturbance by combating what was being said and for that I am truly sorry. I am a retired boxer that earns an unprecedented amount of money, globally, for appearances, speaking engagements and occasional small exhibitions.”

Mayweather’s post on Instagram earlier this week of him wearing a RIZIN MMA and Kickboxing glove has since been deleted. RIZIN, Brent Johnson and Tenshin Nasukawa have yet to put out a statement on the matter.

The mentioned fight put on for a small amount of wealthy spectators is something that has been offered to a boxer before. Heavyweight Tyson Fury mentioned on the “JRE MMA Show” that he was offered a fight on a cruise ship from someone “who wanted to make this a fight exclusive for him and his buddies.”

The ball is in RIZIN’s court at this point as to what they do with their New Year’s Eve show.

Floyd Mayweather and Tenshin Nasukawa To Battle On Rizin’s New Year’s Eve Card

RIZIN’s annual New Year’s Eve just became bigger than ever before. It was announced late Monday at noon in Japan (Sunday night in the west) that undefeated boxer Floyd Mayweather will face undefeated kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa. The exact ruleset hasn’t been made clear as of yet, but at the press conference, which both fighters were present at, Mayweather said that it will be announced in the “coming weeks.”

In mid-September articles said that Mayweather expressed interest in fighting in Japan in what would be a tune-up fight before fighting Manny Pacquiao in a sequel matchup. Less than an hour before the press conference had went live, Mayweather teased his partnership with RIZIN by posting an Instagram photo where he wore a RIZIN MMA glove in his left hand and their kickboxing/boxing glove in the other hand.

Both fighters’ last appearances were in crossover events, with Mayweather participating in the highly lucrative boxing bout with MMA star Conor McGregor. In RIZIN’s promotion Tenshin recently battled MMA star in his own right, Kyoji Horiguchi in a kickboxing bout at RIZIN 13.

RIZIN 14 is scheduled to take place on New Year’s Eve at Saitama Super Arena, the unofficial home for RIZIN events. The rest of the card is set to be announced later this week.