“I want to go above them” - Hiroki Akimoto dreams of surpassing Takeru and Masaaki Noiri as the biggest Japanese star in ONE

Aside from reclaiming the ONE bantamweight kickboxing world title, number one-ranked divisional contender Hiroki Akimoto has another goal in mind that he wants to tick off.

Akimoto revealed this during his most recent interview with Sportskeeda MMA ahead of his return, as he stated:

“Yes, of course, Takeru and Masaaki Noiri are big names of the industry, they're good characters. So people know about them, but I'm excited to be in the same organization as them. But I want to go above them and prove that I'm the best in the world.”

See the full interview below:

Currently, Takeru Segawa and newly signed Masaaki Noiri are considered the most famous and sought-after Japanese kickboxers in the world’s largest martial arts organization, but the Evolve MMA representative wants to eclipse them.

This quest by Akimoto continues against Wei Rui, whom he will face on May 3 as part of the ONE Fight Night 22 card inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in a bantamweight kickboxing bout.

Currently, Akimoto holds a solid record of six wins against two losses in ONE Championship and holds victories over Josh Tonna, Zhang Chenglong, Qiu Jiangliang, and Capitan Petchyindee.

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Hiroki Akimoto is hyped for his return to action after a long layoff

After almost two years of hiatus, Akimoto will finally make his much-anticipated comeback to action because his last appearance happened in November 2022 at ONE 163, where he suffered a razor-thin split decision defeat at the hands of Petchtanong Petchfergus.

Now, the 29-year-old looks to book his shot against the reigning ONE bantamweight kickboxing world champion, Jonathan Haggerty, if he gets the job done against his upcoming Chinese foe.

ONE Fight Night 22 will air live in U.S. primetime on May 3, free of charge for existing Prime Video subscribers in North America. The card will emanate inside the hallowed ring of the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.