Hiroki Akimoto open to ‘exciting’ war against Superlek at bantamweight: “It’ll be fun”

At ONE Friday Fights 34, Superlek Kiamoo9 pulled off one of the biggest wins of his career on the biggest stage possible.

For years, fans had dreamed of seeing ‘The Kicking Machine’ go toe-to-toe with a fellow elite striker that he has always had a good relationship with.

Finally, the moment came for the ONE bantamweight kickboxing world champion to square off with flyweight Muay Thai king Rodtang Jitmuangnon.

Incredibly, the fight lived up to its meteoric expectations with both men producing an instant classic that saw the pair go back-and-forth before the kickboxing champ got his hand raised.

There was only one aspect of the fight that left some room for criticism from the fans perspective and it came before fight night had even come around.

Ahead of the fight, Superlek failed to make the flyweight limit and whilst the fight still went down at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium, it became a three-round non-title affair.

With fans praying for an extra two rounds by the time the fight came to an end, a lot of people have spoken about the need for ‘The Kicking Machine’ to move up to the bantamweight division in the near future.

Should he decide to make this move, there is already a former champion that is ready and willing to welcome him to the new weight class.

In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Hiroki Akimoto spoke about his desire to put on another instant classic with one of the best in the world under the ONE Championship banner:

“When I saw the news about him weighing over when he fought Rodtang, I was like, ‘Why doesn’t he come to bantamweight soon?’ If Superlek does move up, I’d love to fight him. It’ll be one for the fans. It’ll be fun. If I were to fight Superlek, it will be exciting.”

Watch the full interview below:

ONE Friday Fights 34 is available to watch back in full via ONE Championship’s YouTube channel or the ONE Super App.