Marat Grigorian believes Superlek’s "beautiful and artistic" style might not be enough to KO Nabil Anane again in ONE 172 redo

Marat Grigorian isn't sure if Superlek can finish Nabil Anane the second time around.

Nearly two years removed from their first meeting at ONE Friday Fights 22, Superlek and Anane will run it back in one of five massive world title clashes at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang inside the iconic Saitama Super Arena on Sunday, March 23.

Superlek goes into the bout as the reigning ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion while Anane steps into the spotlight as ONE interim bantamweight Muay Thai world titleholder.

The winner will leave 'The Land of the Rising Sun' as the undisputed king of the bantamweight Muay Thai division.

In their first meeting, Superlek scored a first-round knockout over the then-debuting Anane. Since then, the 6'4" Algerian Thai sensation has put together six straight wins, including a title-winning performance against Nico Carrillo at ONE 172.

With that in mind, Marat Grigorian thinks Superlek will struggle to deliver a repeat performance against the vastly improved 20-year-old.

"I like how Superlek fights," Grigorian said in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA. "Beautiful and artistic. However, Nabil has improved a lot in his last fight. So it’s going to be tough [for him to beat Anane]."

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Marat Grigorian will also be in action at ONE 172.

The former three-time GLORY Kickboxing champion returns to martial arts' biggest global stage for a clash with ONE newcomer Kaito Ono.

Grigorian has split his last six outings but goes into the bout fresh off a big second-round knockout over Abdelali Zahidi at ONE Friday Fights 92 in December. Overall, Grigorian is 68-14-1 with five of his wins coming under the ONE banner.

Meanwhile, Ono will be making his promotional premiere at ONE 172, but he's already established himself as one of Japan's top kickboxing stars, winning titles in Shoot Boxing and Rise.

Now, he looks to conquer one of the biggest names in the sport and immediately establish himself as a legitimate threat in the featherweight kickboxing division.

ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang will emanate from the Saitama Super Arena in Japan on Sunday, March 23. Head over to watch.onefc.com to learn more about how you can watch the event live.