If nice guys finish last, then Jason Moloney should have far more losses on his record than he does.

The Australian bantamweight contender and former champion finds himself back on the big stage in Japan on Monday when he meets the hugely-popular Tenshin Nasukawa.

It’s not make or break, but a win for the 34-year-old would catapult him back into the big time and into the rematch he covets with Yoshiki Takei, who overcame a rocky last round to snatch Moloney’s world crown on the scorecards in Japan last May.

While that might be the fight Moloney most wants, he is not overlooking the man many know simply as Tenshin one bit.

“I feel like I’m really excited about the position I’m in at the moment,” Moloney tells BoxingScene, a content smile never far from his face.

“Obviously I’m coming off a loss, but I feel like this is the perfect fight for me. Winning this fight against an opponent with such a massive profile in Japan, I know maybe on the world boxing scene he’s not the most well-known person, but I know that he’s so popular in Japan. Obviously there’s such a big market for me over in Japan at the moment and given that they've got the four [bantamweight] champions over there, that’s really where I need to establish myself. If I can win this fight, which I know I can, this is really going to open the doors to some big fights for me and it gets me another world title shot, then I’m back right in the mix of it and just starting, I guess, the second chapter of my career. I’m just so excited about where the doors of this win can open up and re-resurrect my career.”

To call it a resurrection might be harsh. Moloney was seconds away from keeping his title against Takei, but the former champion has been around long enough to know that shoulda, woulda, coulda counts for little in boxing.

But the loss still irks Moloney. He knew he was capable of more. He knows he could have finished Takei. He still does himself up in knots over it, and did so again watching it back as part of this camp.

“I actually watched that fight again today,” he reluctantly grins, several weeks out from the fight. “Being a Sunday over here, we have a rest day, but I usually go around to my coach’s house and we watch a bit of footage. Whether that’s watching Tenshin or watching my last fight or watching some of the sparring from during the week.

“I just kicked myself because I just started so poorly. I had some good moments throughout the end of the fight, particularly the last round. But I can just see there was moments where I’m getting on top and I’m breaking him down. But I just didn’t go through the gears and didn’t fight to my strengths. I just know I’ve got so much more to give.”

That is not how any champion wants to feel when they watch back tape of how they lost their hard-earned title.

Having earned so much praise for getting in the trenches with Saul Sanchez earlier in the year, to make his first championship defense in a war, he now kicks himself at letting the belt slip through his fingers.

“That performance, it’s really one that frustrates me to watch back,” Moloney continues. “It’s really a performance that I’m not proud of. I’m really looking forward to getting back over there and getting it right this time and really showing the world, but also the Japanese people, what I’m made of.”

Moloney is aware, however, that if Tenshin adds his name to his record, it will be Tenshin who is guided into bigger things. That would, in boxing terms, make Moloney a gatekeeper.

“Yeah, 100 per cent,” he sighs. “I think that they saw that fight and they probably think that I have a bit of trouble with southpaws. They think that they can set Tenshin up. They think if he can beat a former world champion that moves him on to the bigger fights. I think they want this to show that he’s ready for the next jump. I’ve certainly got other plans in mind. I think they’ve got it wrong and they probably don’t understand the person that I am and how hard I took that loss and how hard I’ve been working since that loss to get better. I did have trouble with the guy being a southpaw, but since that fight I’ve identified the weakness.

“I’ve been working so hard to improve in that area. Weeks out I felt I was already in such better form. I’m so much more comfortable in front of the left-handers now. I’ve really added some tricks to my game. I think they’ve made a mistake, but I’m grateful that they’ve taken the risk. I can’t help but respect what they do over there. They’re throwing this guy in after five fights against a former world champion. I love that they do that and I respect that, but they’ve got it wrong. I’m grateful that they've given me the opportunity and I’m going to grab it with both hands.”

Tenshin is a 26-year-old Japanese southpaw. His pro record is 5-0 (2 KOs), a former kickboxer who is best known in many circles for the tears he shed after the towel came in to save him from Floyd Mayweather in a 2018 exhibition. But he’s got a huge following in Japan.

“I didn’t really know too much of him and I didn’t really take anything of that Mayweather exhibition,” Moloney adds. “I don’t know if I really paid much attention at the time, obviously since I’ve gone back and watched it. I mean, he’s super popular over there, but I don’t know if you either love him or you hate him over there. I’m not too sure, but look, he hasn’t beaten any top opposition as a boxer. There’s no denying that and they know that, but as I said, they obviously believe in him. They obviously think he’s the real deal or they wouldn’t put him up against me in his sixth fight. There’s a lot of unknowns with him. You can tell from watching him that he’s a very good athlete and he’s got great potential, but I think it’s too early for him. I think my experience will show and also just the improvements that I've made over the past six months. I'm really looking forward to showing those improvements and really putting on a special performance that I can be proud of.”

Moloney was frustrated at not being able to get some activity at the back end of last year. He wanted to jump in and try to get the momentum to immediately return, and he is excited knowing what a win would do for a career that has already seen him take on one of the era’s finest fighters in Naoya Inoue, whom he fought in 2020.

But where it might lead him is far from the forefront of his mind. While the Takei rematch is what he wants, the vision does not now extend beyond Tenshin.

“I’m really not looking past or thinking too much ahead of past Tenshin because I know that this is so important that I win this fight. I’m really putting all my eggs in one basket at the moment. When I sit down and watch that [Takei] fight, I’d absolutely love that rematch. I’m very confident that I’d beat him if I could roll the dice again. Hopefully that happens, but I'm super focused on Tenshin at the minute.”

Jason’s twin brother Andrew scored the 27th win of his 31-fight career in December and it has long been their dream to hold world titles at the same time and defend them in Australia on the same show. 

“The dream’s still alive, that’s right,” Jason goes on. “I feel like the dream’s well and truly still alive. I know many might have written us off, but I really feel like we’re both boxing better than we ever have. We’re still improving at 34. I still feel like we’re both improving. We’re both still super hungry. We’re both in good positions at the moment. Hopefully, Andrew will get an eliminator in his next fight. He’s right on the cusp of another world title shot. As am I. A good win over Tenshin will give me another title shot, I’m sure. The dream’s well and truly alive. We’re working very hard to make sure it happens this year.”