Kickboxer-turned Tenshin Nasukawa of Teiken Boxing Gym stopped the World Boxing Association’s fourth-ranked bantamweight Jonathan Rodriguez of the United States in the third round in a nontitle bout on July 20 at Tokyo’s Ryogoku Kokugikan Sumo Arena.

The technical knockout of the scheduled 10-rounder fought at the catchweight of 54.4 kgs (120 lbs) came 1 minute and 49 seconds into the round when the left-handed Nasukawa sent Rodriguez down on his back with a barrage of right-left combinations. While Rodriguez wobbled to his feet, the referee called off the fight.

After the fight, Nasukara, ranked seventh in the division by the WBA, said, ‘’I finally did it. Who said that I cannot achieve a KO win? I did everything I could for this moment. I am a little happy now because I was able to achieve the result. I did not feel any impact when I landed the last decisive punch. That’s the way it was. I will keep evolving.’’

Nasukawa almost decked Rodriguez shortly before the end of the second round with a straight left to the head. But Rodriguez survived as the bell ending the round rang soon after.

With the win, the 25-year-old Nasukawa now has four straight wins, two by KO, while Rodriguez, also, 25, fell to a 17-3-1 win-loss-draw tally with seven KOs.

The fight was held as the chief supporting card for the day’s event called ‘’Prime Video Presents Live Boxing 9.’’