“Those kicks resemble an axe” - Fans marvel in awe of Superlek’s systematic beatdown of Takeru at ONE 165

Combat sports fans are still dealing with the hangover that ONE Championship gave them thanks to the stellar ONE 165 and its main event clash that is already in contention for the promotion’s fight of the year.

In it, Japanese icon Takeru Segawa challenged Thai megastar Superlek Kiatmoo9 for the ONE flyweight kickboxing world championship and saw both men hold nothing back for the entirety of the 5-round clash.

Superlek stayed true to his camp’s original gameplan of not rushing the action and forcing Takeru to be the one plodding forward, opening him up to being peppered with leg kicks and quick hits.

ONE Championship shared some highlights of the bout on their Instagram account, and fans quickly gave both men their flowers:

“That leg was done. Takeru good poker face but those kicks landed all night and affected him”

“Those kicks resemble an axe”

“Was watching it live and I swear the sound of those kicking was echoing the whole stadium. Kudos to [these] elite warriors! It was indeed thrilling and entertaining”

“Set it up perfect with these jabs”

“Listen to those sound man…”

“Super goat”

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Takeru reveals injury suffered at ONE 165

The long-awaited ONE Championship debut of the ‘Natural Born Crusher’ did not go to plan as he eventually fell to Superlek via unanimous decision, and the fans inside the Ariake Arena immediately felt his emotions as he tearfully apologized to the crowd in his homeland of Japan.

Many wondered just how devastating Superlek’s thunderous kicks were in actuality since, during the fight, Takeru was already favoring his lead leg by the second round.

In response, Takeru showcased in full detail the extent of his injury, confirming that he cannot walk properly after tearing a muscle.