Floyd Mayweather Jr shocked the sporting world when he turned up in Tokyo on Sunday night to announce a bout on New Year's Eve against an unknown Japanese kickboxer.
The fight was going to be against 20-year-old Tenshin Nasukawa in the Japanese capital after Mayweather reportedly signed a deal with RIZIN Fighting Federation, a Japanese mixed martial arts company.
However, the 41-year-old took to social media last night to reveal the whole thing had been a major misunderstanding.
"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," Mayweather said on Instagam.
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"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 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 by Brent Johnson of "One Entertainment" was that this was to be an exhibition put on for a small of group wealthy spectators for a very large fee.
"This exhibition was previously arranged as a "Special Bout" purely for entertainment purposes with no intentions of represented as an official fight card nor televised worldwide.
"Once I arrived to the press conference it, my team and I were completely derailed by the new direction this event was going and we should have put a stop to 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 was completely blindsided by the arrangements that were being made without my consent nor approval.
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"For the sake of the several fans and attendees that flew in from all parts of the world to attend the press conference, I was hesitant to create 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."
Nasukawa, who has a kickboxing record of 27-0 and an MMA record of 4-0, was just as surprised as the rest of the world about the fight, speaking at the press conference, he said: "It was a surprise offer but I accepted without hesitation.
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"It's the biggest moment in my life and I want to be the man who changes history. I'll do that with these fists, with one punch. Just watch."
The exact rules and weight class for the bout weren't revealed, however, Mayweather was 2/9 to beat the man half his age, while Naukawa was 11/4.
Meanwhile, the American has been linked with a fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov and a rematch with Manny Pacquiao, who he has already beat on his way to 50-0.
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Nurmagomedov recently made Conor McGregor submit in the Octogon, another victim of Mayweather, however, he is 10/1 to be the first person to beat the undefeated boxer.
The 41-year-old is massive odds on at 1/25 to beat the Russian and 3/10 to be victorious again against Pacquiao, while the Filipino is 5/2 to end his run of 50 straight wins.
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