Boxer Floyd Mayweather has signed a deal with a mixed martial arts company and will fight kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa in Japan on 31 December.
41-year-old five-weight world champion Mayweather has recently discussed contests against UFC's Khabib Nurmagomedov and boxer Manny Pacquiao but is set to make his debut this year in a MMA bout.
It will take place at the RIZIN.14 event in Saitama. The format and rules for the fight have yet to be decided but will be announced in the near future.
20-year-old Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa has a record of 27-0 record in kickboxing and a 4-0 record in MMA. "It was a surprise offer but I accepted without hesitation," he said.
Speaking at a press conference in Tokyo, Mayweather declared "I wanted to do something different. I wanted to display my skills outside the US and be in a special fight." He has not fought since coming out of retirement to defeat Conor McGregor in a boxing bout last year.
