A dream matchup between Takeru Segawa and Rodtang Jitmuangnon has been announced for the main event of ONE 165 booked for Sunday, Jan. 28, 2024 in Tokyo, Japan. Combat sports fans are excited to watch this highly anticipated super fight. It will be under kickboxing rules, in a ring, as a non-title match of five rounds.
Takeru vs. Rodtang at ONE 165
Fans of combat sports have been hoping to see a matchup of this magnitude. This is the best of Muay Thai and ONE facing the best of kickboxing and K-1. A battle of top pound-for-pound strikers. Finally, these two are set to meet at ONE 165.
“The Iron Man” Rodtang Jitmuangnon
Rodtang is the long-reigning ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion. “The Iron Man” has defended his crown in five bouts. Worldwide, Rodtang is celebrated for his fan-friendly, exciting style. The Muay Mat athlete began his combat sports career when he was just 7 years old.
In ONE Championship, the Muay Thai king is best known for his matchups against fighters such as Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, Jonathan Haggerty, and Superlek Kiatmoo9.
The Thai-born fighter has competed in Japan under kickboxing rules in the past. Rodtang competed in RISE and went 1-1, taking a loss to Tenshin Nasukawa and a win against Yuki Taguchi. Since then, he has mixed kickboxing and Muay Thai in ONE.
Takeru Segawa
Japanese superstar Takeru has made an incredible career for himself in kickboxing. The “Natural Born Crusher” was a three-division K-1 Kickboxing world champion, and defended each title, in addition to his three K-1 Grand Prix championships across three weight classes.
The 32-year-old Takeru is recognized as one of the most exciting fighters in combat sports boasting an impressive 60-percent knockout win rate. Between 2012 and 2021, the Japanese athlete stayed unbeaten in over 30 bouts.
In 2022, Takeru faced Tenshin Nasukawa in a blockbuster match. The two pound-for-pound strikers met in a sold-out Tokyo Dome for one of the biggest fights of the past decade. With a unanimous decision loss to Tenshin, Takeru vacated his K-1 titles and took his skills on the road. Since then, he has earned a knockout win to capture an ISKA title against the UK-born Bailey Sugden.
The kickboxing star has fought under Muay Thai rules previously. With the name Takeru Kaewsamrit, he competed in Rajadamnern Stadium and elsewhere in Thailand from 2008 to 2010. More recently, he has been working alongside Muay Thai strikers to sharpen his skills. This has included Boxing Works in the USA, Yodkitsada, Superbon, and Nong-O Hama. But, has spent the vast majority of his professional career in kickboxing.
ONE 165
In a press conference in Tokyo, ONE Championship, Rakuten, and Abema TV announced ONE 165. This event will take place on Jan. 28 at the Ariake Arenaat in Tokyo, Japan. The main event will be two striking kings throwing down between Takeru and Rodtang. ONE Championship has done a live event in Japan since 2019. Additionally, ONE 165 will feature Sinya Aoki and Sage Northcutt.