Masaaki Noiri admits he felt every ounce of Tawanchai’s destructive kicks in world title tiff at ONE 172: “This is dangerous”

Masaaki Noiri's knockout power proved to be the difference in his world title tiff against Tawanchai PK Saenchai at ONE 172 but the Japanese sensation admits his dance partner's dangerous kicking game was just as destructive.

The striking maestros collided in one of four world title fixtures inside the legendary Saitama Super Arena last Sunday, March 23, with the winner walking away as the ONE interim featherweight kickboxing world champion and a ticket to a unification contest against Superbon.

Both men traded strike-for-strike for as long as the duel lasted. Tawanchai controlled the early exchanges off his usual kicking game and punch combinations, while the Team Vasileus superstar relied on his counters and footwork to retaliate with similar strikes.

Though he was under enormous pressure, Masaaki Noiri's tactics began to work wonders as the third round of their contest unfolded. The 31-year-old started to shut down Tawanchai's game and relied on his trademark kicking game and educated hands to get the job done and emerge victorious by TKO at 1:55 of the canto.

His victory aside, the former two-division K-1 champion believes Tawanchai's kicking game was just as dangerous as he perceived it to be. The interim champ told My Navi News days after ONE 172:

"When I got hit from Tawanchai's kicks, I thought, 'Wow, this is dangerous.'And that was something that happened during the match. I knew from the very second that my opponent's attacks were dangerous."

Watch the full interview here:

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Masaaki Noiri says fear did not exist in his dictionary ahead of ONE 172

Despite having a huge task ahead of him, to be the first fighter to stop Tawanchai under the ONE spotlight in four years, nothing unfazed Masaaki Noiri heading into ONE 172.

The Team Vasileus star knew what he had to do to get the job done. Moreover, he had his mind focused on perfecting the game plan without thinking about any negative aspects of falling short to the featherweight Muay Thai king.

Noiri, in the same interview, shared:

"I didn’t feel a single bit of fear. I just wanted to fight...My wife was next to me and she was sighing the whole time from tension and fear. But I wasn’t scared at all. All I could think was that I wanted to fight."

Fans can relive his highlight-reel win over the ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion and the entire ONE 172 card for free at watch.onefc.com.