Japanese kickboxing legend Takeru says ONE 172 super fight against Rodtang will be the "most crucial point" of his career

Japanese kickboxing star Takeru Segawa is no stranger to the limelight throughout his career, which spans nearly 50 fights. However, he believes his third foray in ONE Championship might be the one that will define his legacy.

Six months after notching his first win in ONE with a second-round knockout of Thant Zin last September, Takeru is now only days away from sharing the circle with Thai superstar Rodtang Jitmuangnon in a flyweight kickboxing bout at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang on Sunday, March 23.

In a graphic shared by ONE on Instagram, 'The Natural Born Krusher' explained how important their megafight is from his perspective:

"While I cannot undo that loss, I swore that I would beat Rodtang to redeem myself. This is the most crucial point of my career."

Check out the entire post below:

The loss that the 33-year-old was referring to was his valiant but heartbreaking January 2024 promotional debut defeat to Superlek Kiatmoo9, whom he challenged for the 135-pound kickboxing crown.

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Superlek eager to see who comes out on top between Takeru, Rodtang

While Superlek will attempt to unify the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world championship by defeating ONE interim bantamweight Muay Thai king Nabil Anane at ONE 172, he is just as excited to watch Takeru and Rodtang throwdown inside the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

'The Kicking Machine' said as much during the ONE 172 pre-event press conference:

"I believe that Rodtang versus Takeru is one of the most awaited fights in history, and it's going to be five rounds this time. It's a fight between two different styles, but it's going to be a lot of hitting. So everyone, please look forward to this fight. Thank you."

Watch the entire press conference below:

ONE 172 will be available live on pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com.