Records Collide As ONE SAMURAI 4 Sets Featherweight Kickboxing Semifinals
Marat Grigorian’s ledger tells the story of a veteran who rarely slows down, and it will be put to the test again when the ONE SAMURAI 4 semifinals unfold inside Tokyo’s Ariake Arena on Saturday, October 17.
The three-time Glory Kickboxing World Champion enters the ONE SAMURAI Featherweight Kickboxing Tournament final four sitting at 71-14, having stretched his win streak to four with a unanimous decision over Mamuka Usubyan at The Inner Circle 25 on August 7. That nine-minute battle inside Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium saw the Armenian smother his Russian opponent with relentless forward pressure.
Standing opposite him is Luo Chao, whose own numbers tell a story of resilience rather than dominance. The Chinese striker improved to 44-11 with a third-round surge that overturned an early deficit against Kosuke Takagi at ONE SAMURAI 2 on August 8.
Luo trailed after Takagi seized the second round, but he broke through with a barrage of punches that flipped the fight in the final stanza. That kind of mid-fight adjustment now meets a fighter whose pressure and fight IQ have made him one of the toughest puzzles in the division.
The other semifinal carries its own set of numbers worth tracking. Masaaki Noiri improved to 52-14 with a first-round knockout of Liu Mengyang in the ONE SAMURAI 2 main event, a finish that also avenged a loss Liu had handed him nearly two years earlier.
That statement performance earned the Team Vasileus standout a US$100,000 performance bonus from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong. It also set up a rematch of styles against Mohammad Siasarani, who needed barely a minute to dispatch Kaito on the same Tokyo card.
Siasarani’s win extended his active streak to six across Muay Thai and kickboxing and pushed his promotional kickboxing record to a pristine 6-0. He took a 2-0 series lead over Kaito in the process, closing the show with a vicious high kick.
Whichever tandem of numbers holds up best in Tokyo, the payoff is the same. The winner of the bracket claims a guaranteed shot at reigning ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Champion Superbon.
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