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Eersel Vs. Rungrawee Moves To The Inner Circle As Mann Vs. Dzhabrailov Headlines ONE Fight Night 42

One Championship Writer — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:42:18 +0000

April 10 in Bangkok just got a significant reshuffle — and both cards are better for it.

The vacant ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Championship bout between Regian “The Immortal” Eersel and Rungrawee “Legatron” Sitsongpeenong has moved from ONE Fight Night 42 on Prime Video to headline The Inner Circle, streaming live at live.onefc.com in Asia primetime from Lumpinee Stadium.

In its place, the welterweight MMA collision between undefeated standouts Chase “Mannimal” Mann and Dzhabir Dzhabrailov steps up to top the Prime Video card in U.S. primetime.

The ONE World Title fight remains one of the most compelling matchups on either card. Eersel carries a 64-5 striking record and a 13-1 promotional mark into his bid to reclaim the lightweight kickboxing gold he once held — a title he won alongside the ONE Lightweight Muay Thai World Title to become a rare two-sport ONE World Champion.

The 6-foot-2 Surinamese-Dutch kickboxer is on a three-fight winning streak and returns with the specific purpose of reclaiming what he considers his.

Rungrawee, however, has earned this shot on pure merit. The Thai striker known for his devastating leg kicks carries a 158-48 career record and a 6-2 promotional mark, including a unanimous decision win over Youssef Assouik last August. He has wanted this title fight for some time, and he arrives at Lumpinee fully intending to leave as champion.

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On the Prime Video side, Mann vs. Dzhabrailov is a fight with real consequences. Both men are undefeated, both finish fights, and both are operating in a welterweight division where the next title challenger to face Christian Lee could emerge from exactly this kind of matchup.

Mann is 7-0 with five finishes and made an immediate impression on his ONE debut earlier this year. Dzhabrailov is 6-0 with all six wins by finish, and has demolished all three of his ONE opponents inside two minutes. One of these records ends on April 10.

ONE Fight Night 42 on Prime Video and The Inner Circle both go down at Lumpinee Stadium on Friday, April 10.

The post Eersel Vs. Rungrawee Moves To The Inner Circle As Mann Vs. Dzhabrailov Headlines ONE Fight Night 42 first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

The Terrifying Kicks That Inspired Rungrawee’s ‘Legatron’ Nickname

One Championship Writer — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:39:26 +0000

Rungrawee Sitsongpeenong did not pick his nickname. It was given to him by the son of his gym owner, a Transformers fan who watched one particular left kick land one too many times and could only reach one conclusion.

“Legatron.” Leg plus Megatron. A name born in a training gym in Bangkok that has since followed him across 206 professional fights and onto the biggest stage of his career.

On Friday, April 10, Rungrawee challenges Regian “The Immortal” Eersel for the vacant ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Title in the main event of The Inner Circle, streaming live for members at live.onefc.com from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok.

“He saw how powerful my left kick was,” Rungrawee said of the young man who coined the name. “At the time, he was into Transformers movies, so he came up with ‘Legatron.’ It’s basically a mashup of ‘Leg’ and ‘Megatron.’ It fits my aggressive kicking style perfectly.”

The timing of the name was deliberate. It arrived just as Rungrawee was joining ONE Championship in early 2023, a new chapter demanding a new identity. He heard it and immediately knew it was right.

“I loved it immediately,” he said. “It perfectly describes who I am as a fighter — someone with the kicking power of a robot.”

But “Legatron” was not always the plan. Rungrawee began his career as a knee fighter, a clinch-oriented Thai who worked at close range and used his physicality to dominate exchanges. It was the legends around him at Sitsongpeenong who redirected him.

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“Saenchai and Khem Sitsongpeenong told me I needed to add kicks to my game, especially for fighting internationally against taller guys,” he said. “If you only try to clinch, you’ll fall behind on points. Heavy kicks just worked perfectly with my body type, and it’s been a huge advantage ever since.”

The transformation was gradual, accelerated by nearly 30 kickboxing fights in China where the repetitions eventually turned a decent kick into a signature weapon. Now it is the thing opponents prepare for most and struggle to solve once the fight begins.

Across his 6-2 ONE record, Rungrawee has beaten everyone placed in front of him during a three-fight promotional winning streak that earned him this title opportunity. Eersel is a different proposition entirely. He’s a six-time ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Champion with a 13-1 promotional record and the kind of technical depth that has made him one of the most decorated champions in ONE Championship history.

Rungrawee is not underestimating that. He is also not arriving as a grateful participant.

“I’m going to go out there and show everyone why I’m called ‘Legatron,'” he said. “Whether those kicks are enough to win the ONE World Title, we’ll see on fight night. But I promise I’m going to give it everything I’ve got and leave a performance that no one will forget.”

The post The Terrifying Kicks That Inspired Rungrawee’s ‘Legatron’ Nickname first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

Takeru Is Retiring On His Own Terms And Rodtang Is The Only Fight That Could Have Made That Possible

One Championship Writer — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 06:30:05 +0000

Takeru Segawa has been thinking about retirement for three or four years. Not because he was ready to stop, but because he wanted to choose the right moment before the sport chose it for him.

For the former three-division K-1 Champion, the line between fighting at full strength and beginning a slow, public decline is one he has watched carefully. He saw where it was heading. He decided to act before it moved.

“The condition of my body was my top consideration,” he said. “The moment when I thought that this would truly be the last time I could fight in my strongest condition was probably about a year ago.”

That assessment produced the announcement: his final professional fight will be in the main event of ONE SAMURAI 1 on Wednesday, April 29, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. His opponent is Rodtang Jitmuangnon. The ONE Interim Flyweight Kickboxing World Title is on the line.

There is no more fitting end, and Takeru knows it. He joined ONE Championship to fight Rodtang. He pushed through a debut loss to Superlek, rebuilt himself in the aftermath of what Rodtang did to him at ONE 172, and returned last November to deliver a highlight-reel finish over Denis Puric that proved the finishing power was still very much intact.

But the Rodtang loss has never left him. It is the source of his obsession with this rematch, and the reason he chose not to walk away after Puric.

“The essence of my fighting style is a slugfest, and I’ve always wanted to have that kind of fight with Rodtang,” he said. “The last fight, I couldn’t even reach that point and lost. This is why I always believed I must fight Rodtang one more time. That’s the reason I have come this far.”

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The retirement decision is not draped in sadness. He is still training hard, still preparing the way a champion prepares, and he has no interest in treating April 29 as anything other than the most important fight of his career.

“The fight is not over, so I don’t have sadness or similar feelings associated with retirement,” he said. “Because the next match will be the last, I’m spending each day so that I can give everything I have and retire without any regrets.”

What sits beneath the surface is something heavier. Takeru is acutely aware of what a winning result means to the fans who have followed every chapter of his career and to the team and family who have sacrificed alongside him.

April 29 carries the weight of all of it.

“I want to show a victory to those who have supported me, to everyone on my team, and my family,” he said. “Since coming to ONE, I feel like I betrayed their feelings by losing fights. But this is my chance to let them see me retire as the strongest in the world.”

The post Takeru Is Retiring On His Own Terms And Rodtang Is The Only Fight That Could Have Made That Possible first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

Jonathan Haggerty Believes Infamous Push Kick Is Best Weapon Against Yuki Yoza At ONE SAMURAI 1

One Championship Writer — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 06:39:05 +0000

Yuki Yoza fights in a straight line. He is at his most dangerous when he closes the distance, slips into the pocket, and starts letting his rapid-fire combinations land. His 13-fight winning streak has been built on exactly that sequence, and he has made it work against world-class opponents including Petchtanong Petchfergus and reigning ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek.

The problem is that Jonathan Haggerty has spent his entire career building a weapon designed specifically to stop fighters from getting there.

The 29-year-old ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion defends his title against Yoza at ONE Samurai 1 on Wednesday, April 29, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, and his push kick will be the first and most consequential obstacle between the Japanese challenger and his ambitions.

Haggerty’s teep is not a range-finder. It is not a defensive reset tool. It is an offensive weapon deployed with the same timing, venom, and intent as a lead punch, crashing into opponents the precise moment they commit to closing the gap. Elite strikers have studied it, prepared for it, and walked into the ring believing they were ready. Most have left with the same bruised midsections and broken rhythms.

The weapon grew out of necessity. Standing tall for his weight class coming through the ranks in the UK, Haggerty learned early that his reach was an asset worth weaponising.

“My teeps were just part of my game from a very young age,” he said. “I was quite tall for my weight category growing up, and using the teep was quite effective. So I just continued building it brick by brick. Why stop if it’s working?”

It was already central to his game when he debuted in ONE Championship in 2019 against Joseph Lasiri, controlling the entire fight from distance with stiff front kicks the Italian could never solve. Months later, it helped him dismantle the legendary Sam-A Gaiyanghadao for the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Title, strangling the Thai veteran’s rhythm before it could build. Against Rodtang Jitmuangnon in their two-fight series, it proved equally decisive.

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“From my fights with Rodtang and Sam-A — those were the moments I realised the teep was really working,” Haggerty said. “From then on, it was something I’d always put focus on in training. I’ve just been continuously working on it to make it as dangerous as ever.”

What makes it genuinely difficult to prepare for is not the length or the power — it is the timing. Haggerty doesn’t throw it randomly or defensively. He reads the precise moment an opponent loads up or initiates movement and fires before they can land.

“Honestly, it’s just the timing,” he said. “Knowing when to throw it and not just wasting it. It’s straightforward, and I guess that’s what I love about it. The simplicity of throwing it and the timing, which helps with it being accurate.”

Yoza’s game hinges on entering Haggerty’s space. The teep was built to make that entry as uncomfortable and costly as possible. In his most recent outing against Wei Rui at ONE 171, the front kick arrived every time the Chinese kickboxer attempted to advance, resetting the range before any offense could be launched.

The champion makes no attempt to hide what is coming in Tokyo.

“Against someone like Yuki, who really loves getting in range, he’ll be feeling the full force of it in Japan,” Haggerty said. “Those teeps will be there from start to finish. On his face, the body, and maybe everywhere else I can hit him with it.”

The post Jonathan Haggerty Believes Infamous Push Kick Is Best Weapon Against Yuki Yoza At ONE SAMURAI 1 first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

Estupinan Meets Ortikov As ONE Fight Night 42 Gets Two More Additions

One Championship Writer — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 07:05:19 +0000

ONE Fight Night 42 on Prime Video continues to build, with two more bouts confirmed for the April 10 card at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok.

The more compelling of the two pits Colombian flyweight Muay Thai sensation Jordan “Panda Kick” Estupinan against unbeaten Uzbek contender Aslamjon Ortikov in a matchup that has genuine title-trajectory implications for whichever man emerges with his momentum intact.

Estupinan, 23, arrived in ONE Championship with all the hallmarks of a future star. He’s aggressive, flashy, and technically sharp. He announced himself with a unanimous decision win over Freddie Haggerty on debut, then followed it up by defeating Russian striker Ali Saldoev. That 2-0 start was halted by Japanese sensation Hyu Iwata last September, who handed the Colombian his first professional defeat. Estupinan needs a statement result, and he is getting one of the hardest possible tests to make it.

Ortikov is 23-0. The TC Muaythai and Sport Club Shakhriyor representative has not been beaten professionally, and across nine ONE Championship appearances has added four finishes to his promotional record. He is versatile enough to win by decision or knockout, consistent enough to have never dropped a fight, and dangerous enough to derail the career trajectory of anyone who underestimates him.

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In strawweight MMA, former Shooto Strawweight Champion Hiroba Minowa returns to action against undefeated Armenian newcomer Karen Ghazaryan. Minowa’s early ONE career looked like the beginning of something special — back-to-back wins over Lito Adiwang and former ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Alex Silva established him as a genuine threat to the gold. The 27-year-old Japanese grappler has since hit a difficult stretch, and a return to winning form on the Prime Video stage would go a long way towards reestablishing his credentials.

Ghazaryan is 5-0 with all five victories coming by stoppage. The 24-year-old from Gavar, Armenia, representing Shahmuradyan Fight Club, has not been taken the distance once in his professional career. That 100 percent finishing rate makes his ONE debut a test Minowa cannot afford to take lightly.

The post Estupinan Meets Ortikov As ONE Fight Night 42 Gets Two More Additions first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

The ONE World Title Challenger Who Refuses To Wear Hand Wraps While Fighting

One Championship Writer — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 06:47:22 +0000

After Yuki Yoza won his ONE promotional debut in May 2025, he walked back to his corner, pulled off his gloves, and revealed something that stopped the stadium. He had fought without hand wraps.

The moment spread quickly. In a sport where protecting the hands is considered essential, the choice looked eccentric at best. Yoza laughed it off in the post-fight interview, calling himself “crazy.” But the decision was not a stunt. It was the product of years of training, a specific mechanical problem, and an honest answer to it.

Now the 28-year-old former K-1 Champion prepares to challenge Jonathan “The General” Haggerty for the ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title at ONE Samurai 1 on Wednesday, April 29, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo — and he still will not be wrapping his hands.

The reasoning is precise. Yoza does not use wraps in training either, and when he tried fighting with them, something fundamental broke down in the quality of his striking.

“When I throw a body shot, in training this part of my wrist moves freely, so I can turn it over and land the punch cleanly with the knuckles,” he said. “But when it’s wrapped all the way here, the wrist gets locked. Then sometimes this part hits instead. The same goes for hooks. I can’t land them effectively.”

The experiment began in the final stretch of his K-1 career. Somewhere around his fight with Kongnapa Weerasakreck, he asked for permission to try competing without wraps. It felt immediately right. He has not changed it since.

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“On a whim, I asked for permission to try fighting without them,” he said. “And it felt incredibly natural. Since then, I’ve believed it’s better not to use them.”

The results have backed the method. Since joining ONE, Yoza has beaten Elbrus Osmanov, former ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Petchtanong Petchfergus, and reigning ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek, extending his winning streak to 13 fights. He has scored knockdowns without wraps. He has emerged from fights without hand injuries.

The durability is rooted in his background. Years of Kyokushin Karate, which is competed bare-knuckle, conditioned his hands long before the wraps question ever arose. He does not do specific wrist or knuckle strengthening work. He simply does not need to.

“I can’t even wrap them myself,” he said. “I don’t even know how to wrap hand bandages. After fights I usually don’t have any injuries. My fists are probably fine because I trained in Kyokushin Karate.”

The post The ONE World Title Challenger Who Refuses To Wear Hand Wraps While Fighting first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

Lamnamoonlek Has No Intention Of Stopping Momentum In New Sport

One Championship Writer — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 07:35:53 +0000

Lamnamoonlek Torfunfarm spent hundreds of fights becoming one of the most technically refined Muay Thai strikers in Thailand. Now he is proving that everything he built transfers directly to kickboxing — and his left kick does not care which rule set is in play.

The 27-year-old WMC World Champion takes on China’s Yuan Pengjie in a flyweight kickboxing co-main event at The Inner Circle this Friday, March 27, at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, streaming live for members at live.onefc.com.

Lamnamoonlek’s promotional journey began with a Muay Thai loss to Kongsuk Sitsarawatsuer before he avenged it in their rematch. The move to kickboxing later in the year produced two consecutive decision victories and revealed something unexpected — a Muay Thai lifer adapting to new rules not just competently, but fluently.

“I’m really proud of my first two kickboxing fights,” he said. “I’ve had hundreds of Muay Thai bouts, so adjusting to this rule set took some work. The best part is seeing the fans accept me in this new sport.”

Friday marks his first appearance at flyweight in three years, having previously competed a weight class higher. He is unconcerned.

“This will be my first time dropping to 135 pounds in three years,” he said. “I’m confident in my weight cut; it shouldn’t be an issue. I’m fully committed to the flyweight division now.”

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He has studied Yuan Pengjie extensively throughout a full training camp — taking only two or three days off after his last fight before returning to the gym. The Chinese southpaw brings a 38-4 record and a technical counter-striking game that Lamnamoonlek has dissected with care.

“Yuan Pengjie is a world-class talent,” he said. “He’s a southpaw like me, a technical fighter, and likes to play a counter-game. His main strength is his height and those tricky little shots he throws. As for his weakness, I don’t think his cardio is the best. He seems to fade as the fight goes on.”

The solution is straightforward. Keep the pressure high, let the left kick fly early and often, and trust that the deeper the fight goes, the more the advantage shifts.

A third consecutive kickboxing win would put Lamnamoonlek on the doorstep of a main-roster contract and open the path to the ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Title — the destination he has had in mind since the moment he made the switch.

“Nobody is going to stop me now,” he said.

The post Lamnamoonlek Has No Intention Of Stopping Momentum In New Sport first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

Takeru Will Not Retire Until He Has His Revenge On Rodtang

One Championship Writer — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 07:40:17 +0000

Eighty seconds is all it took to change everything.

When Rodtang Jitmuangnon landed a booming left hook that put Takeru Segawa on the canvas at ONE 172 in Saitama last March, the former three-division K-1 Champion experienced something he had never felt before in a career built on dominance — a clean, definitive, humiliating knockout. Saitama Super Arena fell silent. The damage was undeniable.

What followed, for Takeru, was not retirement. It was obsession.

The 34-year-old Japanese megastar headlines ONE Samurai 1 on Wednesday, April 29, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo — ONE Championship’s inaugural Japan-based event series — in a rematch with Rodtang for the ONE Interim Flyweight Kickboxing World Title. It will be his final professional fight. He has made clear that only one result will give him the ending he needs.

“After I lost to Rodtang, that was around the time I started thinking that I must defeat Rodtang and retire,” he said. “He was the first opponent who gave me that level of humiliation as a fighter. So I feel if I don’t get revenge against a fighter like him, I can’t finish my career as a fighter.”

That single sentence carries the full weight of his entire ONE journey. He joined the promotion specifically to fight Rodtang. He pushed through a debut loss to Superlek. He rebuilt himself in the aftermath of Saitama. And he sent a statement to the world last November at ONE 173, delivering a highlight-reel finish over Denis Puric that made clear his hands still carry lethal intent.

But he was carrying injuries during the first Rodtang fight, and he has never stopped thinking about it.

“Last time, I was not in the best condition with some injuries, so I wanted to fight him one more time as my last match and in the best condition,” he said. “After all, I signed with ONE Championship because I wanted to fight Rodtang, so I must fight in the best condition. If not, I would remain frustrated.”

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The setting adds another layer of pressure — and meaning. A win on home soil in his retirement bout, against the man who gave him the darkest moment of his career, with an interim world title at stake. It is the kind of scenario that belongs in a film, not a real fight card.

Rodtang carries a 274-43 career record and 17 promotional wins into Tokyo. He does not get sentimental, and he does not soften for occasions. The task is enormous.

Takeru is under no illusions about that. He simply does not care.

“I cannot quit without revenge on that,” he said.

The post Takeru Will Not Retire Until He Has His Revenge On Rodtang first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

Hyu, Naito To Settle Business At ONE Samurai 1 In Tokyo

One Championship Writer — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 15:04:22 +0000

The war of words is over. The fight is on.

Undefeated Japanese sensation Hyu will face fellow countryman Taiki “Silent Sniper” Naito in a flyweight kickboxing showdown at ONE Samurai 1, live from Ariake Arena in Tokyo on Wednesday, April 29. It’s part of ONE Championship’s inaugural Japan-based event series.

The matchup has a sharp edge to it. After dismantling Suablack Tor Pran49 with three knockdowns en route to a first-round TKO at ONE Fight Night 41, Hyu turned his attention to Naito on social media, issuing a blunt prediction:

“If you fight me, you will be knocked out.”

Naito accepted, hit back with his own confidence, and the promotion made it official.

The 23-year-old Hyu arrives in Tokyo on the form of his career. The Team Mehdi Zatout and TEAM3K standout is 13-0 with four consecutive finishes inside ONE Championship and has now collected two separate US$50,000 performance bonuses from the promotion.

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The first time he stopped previously undefeated Jordan Estupinan in the third round at ONE Fight Night 35, and the second time he demolished Suablack. He has openly targeted both Rodtang Jitmuangnon and ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek as future opponents, but first there is unfinished business with a man who believes the hype has outpaced the resume.

Naito, 30, is not wrong to question it. The Bell Wood Fight Team representative is one of Japan’s most technically refined strikers. He’s a composed, calculated counter-puncher who does not get drawn into firefights he cannot win. He arrives on a two-fight winning streak, having handed Johan Estupinan his first career loss at ONE Fight Night 32 and followed it up with a sharp first-round stoppage of Nakrob Fairtex at ONE Fight Night 37.

Where Hyu overwhelms opponents with speed, creativity, and the ability to finish from unexpected angles, Naito offers precision and the cold-blooded patience to punish mistakes. The styles are a genuine clash, and with both men carrying momentum and national pride into Ariake Arena, the result is far from certain.

Hyu made his prediction. Naito has other ideas. Tokyo will decide.

The post Hyu, Naito To Settle Business At ONE Samurai 1 In Tokyo first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.

The Fighter Who Never Says No: John Lineker’s Warrior Spirit On Full Display At ONE Fight Night 41

One Championship Writer — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 07:35:45 +0000

Most fighters spend their careers carefully managing risk. John Lineker has spent his tearing up that rule book entirely.

The Brazilian known as “Hands of Stone” has built one of the most compelling careers in ONE Championship not simply through his sledgehammer fists, but through an old-school mentality that is vanishingly rare in modern combat sports: when the call comes, he answers. No negotiations, no excuses, no hesitation.

That philosophy was on vivid display at ONE 165 in Tokyo, where Lineker was sitting in the crowd as a spectator when a last-minute withdrawal threatened to pull a bout from the card. Officials spotted him in the stands and offered him the fight on the spot. Within minutes, he was taped up and ready to compete against former ONE Lightweight MMA World Champion Shinya Aoki — a man who fights two full divisions above Lineker’s natural weight class.

That moment alone would define most careers. But Lineker was only getting started.

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He later ventured into Muay Thai — a transition that elite MMA fighters almost never attempt — and made it look effortless. At ONE 168 in Denver, he stopped Asa Ten Pow in the second round on debut. A month later at ONE Fight Night 25, he dismantled the dangerous Alexey Balyko inside the opening round, silencing every remaining doubter in the process.

Then came kickboxing. Facing former ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Hiroki Akimoto at ONE 172, Lineker turned the bout into a grinding war of attrition, losing a razor-thin split decision over three brutal rounds against one of the most technically gifted Japanese kickboxers of his generation.

Now the 35-year-old steps into yet another new challenge. He faces British striker Ben Woolliss in a featherweight kickboxing clash at ONE Fight Night 41: Sinsamut vs. Jarvis on Prime Video, live from Bangkok’s iconic Lumpinee Stadium this Friday, March 13.

For a man who once suited up from the bleachers, it is just another day at the office.

The post The Fighter Who Never Says No: John Lineker’s Warrior Spirit On Full Display At ONE Fight Night 41 first appeared on Sidekick Boxing.