“So much respect” - John Wayne Parr, fans give their love for Masato’s incredible display of respect to Takeru after ONE 165

Despite losing to reigning ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion Superlek Kiatmoo9 in the main event of ONE 165 on January 28, Takeru Segawa has earned the respect and admiration of fans and other fighters for his amazing performance.

One of those notable athletes is Japanese kickboxing legend Masato Kobayashi, who praised him for displaying his incredible heart and will to win spirit during the world championship clash.

In a recent video posted by ONE Championship on Instagram, Masato welcomed Takeru backstage and told the former three-division K-1 world champion how proud he was of him. The promotion captioned the heartwarming video, saying:

“Only way is up ☝️ Takeru is consoled by kickboxing legend Masato after a tough loss to Superlek 🥊 @k1takeru @masato.official ⁠”

Masato was not the only combat sports personality who admired ‘The Natural Born Crusher,’ as Australian legend John Wayne Parr (@johnwayneparr), along with other fans @_thesavagee_, @duarte.hdm, @chaseenyc, @onlydeadliftfans, and @patchies_zz showed their support for Takeru through their comments:

“So much respect. Losing in front of your hero sucks.”

“Idk what but watching feels like watching a fight anime, man feelings and all😢✊”

“I just discovered a new favorite fighter🔥humble!”

“Bro, it was a great effing fight. Look forward to seeing a rematch some day.”

“Massive respect. Hope to see him recover and fight again soon.”

“Hope he recovers fast🙌🔥would love to see his fight with Rodtang.🙌🔥”

Screenshot of comments

It was a rude welcome for the 32-year-old Japanese star as he was dealt a unanimous decision defeat on his very first fight under the world’s largest martial arts organization. He waited for almost a year for his promotional debut after inking an exclusive multi-fight deal with ONE Championship in April 2023.

---

Takeru sustained injuries on leg and arm after world title fight with Superlek at ONE 165

The loss to his record wasn’t the only souvenir he got from the super fight with Superlek Kiatmoo9, as Takeru Segawa also sustained injuries to his leg and arm during their encounter inside the jam-packed Ariake Arena in Tokyo.

Takeru suffered the injury to his leg through the powerful leg kicks he received from ‘The Kicking Machine,’ while the tear on his muscle was probably caused by the volume of punches that he attempted during the fight.