“The best and biggest fight of all time” - Rodtang explains the magnitude of his long-awaited five-round kickboxing war with Takeru

Thai superstar Rodtang Jitmuangnon is no longer a stranger to big matches and believes his showdown against Japanese counterpart Takeru Segawa later this month is up there.

'The Iron Man' finally battles 'The Natural Born Crusher' in a much-awaited flyweight kickboxing showdown in the headlining contest at ONE 172 on March 23 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

In a media session during the open workout for the event recently, Rodtang shared his thoughts on the magnitude of his upcoming clash against Takeru, saying:

“This fight is very important for me. I think ONE Championship has put together the best and biggest fight of all time.”

Watch the interview below:

The clash between Rodtang and Takeru was already in the works once the former K-1 champion joined ONE Championship in 2023. They were initially penciled in to collide in January last year in Japan until the Jitmuangnon Gym standout withdrew because of injury.

As 2024 wound up, the match was finally concretized with ONE 172 as the designated event.

ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang is available live on pay-per-view via watch.onefc.com.

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Rodtang dares Takeru to bring it on at ONE 172

Rodtang Jitmuangnon said he is ready for what Takeru Segawa will be bringing at ONE 172 and dared the Japanese legend to bring it on.

The 27-year-old Thai fighter shared his state of preparedness during the open workout, underscoring that whatever look his opponent presents he will be up for the challenge.

He said:

"As I predicted, with his style, and he fights in his turf. Takeru will attack me with all he's got. But what will happen when he comes in is another matter."

Entering ONE 172, both Rodtang and Takeru are coming off victories in their previous matches. The former defeated British slugger Jacob Smith back in November by unanimous decision while the latter knocked out Burmese rising star Thant Zin in September.