“Ready to prove myself” - Muay Thai king Tawanchai fired up to complete two-sport takeover at ONE 172 in Saitama

Reigning ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion Tawanchai is ready to show the world that he can dominate in not just one, but two sports.

This Sunday, March 23, Tawanchai will get the chance to do exactly that when he meets former two-division K-1 titleholder Masaaki Noiri at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang — the winner leaving the legendary Saitama Super Arena in Japan as the ONE interim featherweight kickboxing king.

Speaking with ONE Championship days away from fight night, Tawanchai sees his shot at kickboxing gold as another opportunity to prove himself worthy of champ-champ status:

“This opportunity has come. I am ready to prove myself in another sport.”

Standing in the PK Saenchai Muaythaigym athlete's way of two-sport glory will be a fighter who's more than familiar with winning titles in eight-ounce gloves.

---

Masaaki Noiri ready to unleash the 'ONE version' of himself against Tawanchai

In his native Japan, Masaaki Noiri captured welterweight gold under the Krush banner before moving on and capturing welterweight and super lightweight titles in K-1

Noiri is also a former WBC Muay Thai world champion, proving himself as a duel threat.

In January, Noiri scored his first win in ONE, landing a vicious second-round knockout over Shakir Al-Tekreeti at ONE 170. Now with a little momentum behind him, the Tokyo native is ready to show the world the ONE version of himself:

"In my last fight, I competed in a cage, and I’m getting used to fighting in that environment. So I think I can finally show the ONE version of Masaki Noiri."

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.