Tenshin Nasukawa vs Victor Santillan Preview June 8th, 2025
Japan’s unbeaten prospect Tenshin Nasukawa tangles with Victor Santillan of the Dominican Republic this Sunday, June 8th. The 10-round bantamweight tilt from Tokyo can be seen live in America on ESPN+ with the card starting at approximately 3am ET. Nasukawa last entered the ring in February when he beat former WBO Bantamweight Champion Jason Moloney of Australia via a 10-round unanimous decision. In his previous bout in October, he downed Gerwin Asilo by a 10-round unanimous decision to take the vacant WBO Asia Pacific Bantamweight Crown. Santillan last saw ring action in June when he beat Alfree Ramirez via a 10-round unanimous nod.
Nasukawa vs Santillan Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Victor Santillan +560
- Tenshin Nasukawa -1000
My Pick
Nasukawa is 26 years old and carries around a perfect record of 6-0 with 2 Ko’s and has lost a handful of two rounds on the judges’ scorecards out of the 40 he’s boxed since turning pro in September, 2023. The former former professional kickboxer and mixed martial artist is generally regarded as one of the greatest ever modern-day kickboxers. He became famous after his KO wins over former IBF world boxing champion Amnat Ruenroeng in 2017 and Muay Thai champion Wanchalong PK Saenchaigym a year earlier. Nasukawa won numerous titles in kickboxing and retired from the sport in July 2022.
The southpaw, who is an excellent counterpuncher, made his pro debut in April, 2023 when he beat Yuki Yonaha by six round unanimous decision. He beat Luis Guzman Torres via an eight-round unanimous decision five months later and then stopped Luis Robles Pacheco after three rounds. He took another step up in class last July and halted Jonathan Rodriguez in the third stanza and then downed Asilo and Moloney. Nasukawa measures 5-feet-5-inches tall with a 69.5-inch reach but doesn’t have overwhelming power as just 33.3 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage.
The 29-year-old Santillan is also a southpaw and makes the ring walk with an impressive mark of 14-1 with 5 Ko’s. His lone defeat came at the hands of Sho Ishida by 12-round split decision in Japan in June, 2023. He has boxed 92 rounds since making his pro debut in 2018 following an amateur career which saw him compete at the 2017 AMBC American Boxing Continental Championships and win a bronze medal at the 2015 Pan American Games. He reportedly went 200-25 as an amateur.
Santillan, like Nasukawa, doesn’t possess much in the way of power as just 35.7 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage and he’s halted just two of his past nine opponents. He stands just over 5-feet-5-inches tall with an unlisted reach which gives him just a half-inch edge in height on Nasukawa. He beat Jose Armando Valdes Bernal by 10-round unanimous decision for the vacant WBA Fedecaribe Bantamweight Title in 2021. He also has a win over Carlos Caraballo but his most recognizable opponent is Sho Ishida.
Prediction…
Santillan now fights out of Puerto Rico and is used to fighting on the road as he’s boxed in Japan before as well as America. He has plenty of amateur experience and has fine skills with little power, but still more power than Nasukawa. As for Nasakuwa, he’s relatively new to the boxing ring but has plenty of experience in combat sports. He’s already proven himself in the ring with a win over former world champion Moloney so has adapted quite well to the sport. Whoever lets his hands go the most and shows he wants to win it will have the edge here. This is a close call but I’m leaning towards Nasukawa due to his overall fighting experience and the fact he’s boxing at home.
A close contest with Nasukawa having a slight edge.
Play: Nasukawa -1000 @ BetOnline.ag
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Tenshin Nasukawa betting • Victor Santillan betting