ONE 165 in Tokyo, Japan has added three key matches. In a press conference, it was announced that Nieky Holzken will face “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama in a super-fight, plus two kickboxing bouts have also been added to the Jan. 28 event.
Nieky Holzken vs. “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama
Kickboxer Nieky Holzken will face the Judoka and MMA fighter “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama in a special rules super fight. It will be a three-round matchup in which each round will change rulesets, but the entire contest will be in four-ounce gloves. Round 1 will be boxing, Round 2 will be Muay Thai, and Round 3 will be MMA.
The Dutch-born Holzken is a veteran fighter with experience in both kickboxing and boxing. The 40-year-old has 94 victories in kickboxing and 14 in boxing. “The Natural” is best known for being the GLORY kickboxing welterweight world champion.
The Japanese-Korean Akiyama earned a gold medal for Judo in the 2001 Asian Judo Championships, representing South Korea, and the 2002 Asian Games, representing Japan. He then transitioned to a career in MMA where he was a staple of K-1 Hero’s. The Judoka also earned multiple fight of the night bonuses during his time in the UFC. Most recently, he is coming off of a TKO victory against Shinya Aoki.
Akiyama, also known as Choo Sung-hoon, is a popular figure at the moment as he was featured on the Korean Netflix series Physical: 100. Additionally, he is married to popular supermodel Shiho Yano.
Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong vs. Marat Grigorian
The stacked 155 -pound kickboxing division with two decorated strikers ready to throw down with Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong vs. Marat Grigorian. Grigorian is a former GLORY and K-1 world champion, while Sitthichai is a former GLORY and Muay Thai Stadium titleholder.
Sitthichai and Grigorian have fought in five bouts previously. The Thai-striker has won four of these bouts and Grigorian won the most recent clash. Both men are coming off of losses in their most recent fights.
Rade Opacic vs. Iraj Azizpour
ONE Championship has added a heavyweight kickboxing clash between Rade Opacic and Iraj Azizpour. Serbia’s Opacic is a kickboxing knockout machine winning an impressive 83 of his matches by way of knockout. Azizpour, the Iranian slugger, just earned the runner-up position in the 2022 heavyweight Grand Prix. The heavyweight kickboxing clash is expected to produce fireworks.
Booked for Jan. 29 from the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, ONE 165 is starting to come together. The event will be headlined by a kickboxing world title match between Superlek Kiatmoo9 and Takeru Segawa.