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Takeru Segawa struggled to find joy in anything following his loss to Superlek Kiatmoo9.
Signing with ONE Championship to much fanfare in 2023, the former three-division K-1 champion made his promotional debut at ONE 165 in Tokyo, challenging Superlek for the ONE flyweight kickboxing world championship.
Despite his best efforts, 'The Natural Born Crusher' couldn't overcome Superlek's crushing leg kicks and ultimately surrendered a unanimous decision to the Thai superstar in January 2024.
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Looking back on the loss during a recent interview with ONE Championship, Takeru admitted that the loss gnawed away at him for a long time:
“As soon as I got back to training, I was already full sail ahead in preparing for my next fight. After you lose, it is difficult to find joy in anything because the sting and humiliation of defeat linger for months on end.”
The Japanese fighting pride bounced back in September, landing an impressive second-round knockout over Thant Zin and ONE Friday Fights 81.
Now, 'The Natural Born Crusher' will face his toughest test yet when he returns to Japan for a fight fans have been waiting years to see.
Takeru meets 'The Iron Man' at ONE 172 in Japan
On Sunday, March 23, Takeru will head to the iconic Saitama Super Arena for a long-awaited clash with Rodtang Jitmuangnon.
Their highly anticipated showdown will headline ONE 172—an event scheduled to feature five incredible world title tilts and one of the biggest undercards in ONE Championship history.
It will be Rodtang's first time competing in 2025, but the Thai superstar is coming off back-to-back wins against Denis Puric and Jacob Smith in the latter half of 2024. 'The Iron Man' is 13-1 in Muay Thai competition and a perfect 3-0 in kickboxing under the ONE banner.
Overall, Rodtang holds 273 career victories to his credit and is the top-ranked contender in both the ONE flyweight kickboxing and Muay Thai divisions.
Who comes out on top when two of the best P4P strikers in the world throw hands on martial arts' biggest global stage?
ONE 172 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.
