"It's gonna be a good fight for me" - Regian Eersel sizes up Alexis Nicolas test at ONE Fight Night 21

ONE lightweight kickboxing world champion Regian Eersel returns to action next month and is expecting to be given a tough challenge by French fighter Alexis Nicolas.

'The Immortal' is set to defend his world title against 'Barboza' at ONE Fight Night 21 on Prime Video on April 5 at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

It will mark the Eersel's fifth defense of the world title he won in May 2019. The contest also see him return to kickboxing after competing in the lightweight Muay Thai lane in his last three fights, where he eventually won the world title to become a two-sport king.

In an interview with ONE Championship, the 31-year-old Surinamese champion said he has sized up the kind of test that Nicolas will be bringing come fight night and expects it to be a competitive one.

He said:

"It's gonna be a good fight for me, and I'm gonna put my name to the test again. It's also good for him that he gets to fight for the belt in his second fight in ONE."

Regian Eersel last defended the ONE lightweight kickboxing world title in April 2022, defeating Bosnian-German challenger Arian Sadikovic by unanimous decision. After that, he fought in Muay Thai for his next three fights.

Looking to dethrone the Sityodtong Amsterdam standout is Nicolas, 25, who is making his second outing in ONE Championship. He made his debut in January at ONE Friday Fights 47 and defeated Russian Magomed Magomedov by unanimous decision.

ONE Fight Night 21 will air live in U.S. primetime on April 5. It will be free to viewers in the United States and Canada with an active Prime Video subscription.

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Regian Eersel's successful Muay Thai foray in ONE Championship

Apart from taking the ONE kickboxing scene by storm since making his promotional debut in April 2018, Regian Eersel has also become a force to contend with in the Muay Thai lane.

'The immortal' fought his last three fights in the 'art of eight limbs' and churned out impressive wins each of the time.

He first defeated Thai Sinsamut Klinmee by split decision in October 2022 to claim the inaugural ONE lightweight Muay Thai world title and, in turn, becoming a two-sport king as he also holds the division's kickboxing strap.

Five months later, he once again faced off with Sinsamut in a title rematch and scored a knockout victory in the fourth round to remain as champion.

In his last fight in June, Regian Eersel successfully defended the Muay Thai gold for the second time, knocking out Russian challenger Dmitry Menshikov in the opening round.

For his next fight, he shifts back to kickboxing to defend his world title against French challenger Alexis Nicolas at ONE Fight Night 21 on Prime Video on April 5.