Marat Grigorian Calls Out Superbon After ONE SAMURAI 1 Victory Over Kaito Ono
Marat Grigorian had waited over a year for this fight and needed less than two minutes to finish it. The 34-year-old three-time Glory Kickboxing World Champion knocked out Kaito Ono at 1:51 of the first round in featherweight kickboxing at ONE SAMURAI 1 on April 29 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, moving his record to 70 career wins with the fastest finish of his ONE Championship tenure.
The rivalry had been building since Grigorian missed the featherweight limit by 0.75 pounds at ONE 172 last March, prompting Kaito to refuse a catchweight offer and walk away from the booking entirely. Over a year of animosity followed. When they finally touched gloves in Tokyo, Grigorian’s composure in the ring showed no trace of the heat that preceded it.
“When that overhand right landed, and he went down, it was confirmation of all my hard work,” Grigorian said. “Everything I saw in camp played out exactly how I had envisioned it would be. I stayed calm. There were no emotions involved. It was just me completing the job that I came to do.”
The finish came from a right hand and left hook combination that rocked Kaito before a follow-up overhand right dropped him for good. Precise, purposeful, and constructed exactly as Grigorian had pictured it across weeks of preparation at Hemmers Gym in Breda, Netherlands. Even so, he held himself to the standard he always applies in the aftermath.
“I’ve always been a perfectionist, so I would say there’s always something that I could have done better,” he said. “Maybe I could’ve been even sharper from the start. But the win was very close to how I pictured it — dominant, controlled, and decisive.”
The rivalry is settled. The title ambition is not. Grigorian has challenged ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Champion Superbon Singha Mawynn twice before, with both fights going the full distance. He has no intention of leaving the third one in the judges’ hands.
“I’m more complete now. Smarter, calmer, but still dangerous,” he said. “There will be a different version of me in this next fight. I want to control, dominate, and finish him. I don’t want to leave it to the judges this time. I want it in my hands.”
READ MORE: Takeru Segawa To Enter ONE Hall Of Fame After Stunning Retirement Win Over Rodtang At ONE SAMURAI 1
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