“That gave me a boost” - Two-sport king Regian Eersel says early career loss to Cosmo Alexandre pushed him to greater heights

Two-sport king Regian Eersel's dominance is as certain as the passing of seasons, but he wouldn't have reached the heights he's in if not for one important defeat.

The reigning ONE lightweight kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion revealed in an interview with Sherdog that losing to Cosmo Alexandre early in his career changed how he approached his matches.

Alexandre, who had a stellar 3-1 run in ONE Championship, beat Eersel in 2015 albeit in a controversial fashion.

Regian Eersel said:

"It all clicked the first time I fought in America against Cosmo. I was a young boy and he was a top striker. Everybody thought 'Oh, this guy is going to lose' and honestly, I was afraid. I lost the fight on points, but I thought I won, and everybody else thought the same. After the fight, I realized that if I could be on the same level as him, then I could go even higher. That gave me a boost."

Eersel ultimately used that loss as motivation to reach unprecedented heights in his career.

'The Immortal' would lose just once more following his defeat to Alexandre before embarking on an ungodly 22-fight winning streak, the last 10 of which happened in ONE Championship.

Eersel has a chance to bump that winning streak to 23 straight victories when he defends the ONE lightweight kickboxing world title against Alexis Nicolas in the main event of ONE Fight Night 21 on April 5, US primetime, at the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

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Regian Eersel admits he's keeping an eye out for Alexis Nicolas' combinations

Regian Eersel's defeat to Cosmo Alexandre is already behind him, but that doesn't mean he's slacking off.

The Surinamese star is heading into Bangkok with a new opponent to defeat, and Eersel has kept a keen eye on Alexis Nicolas' offensive style.

Eersel told Sherdog he's wary of the Frenchman's combination-heavy approach heading into his fifth defense of the lightweight kickboxing throne.

"He throws good combinations and mixes his hands and legs together very well. He's a world champion, and I'll have to watch out, especially for his kicks."

ONE Fight Night 21, just like all of ONE Championship's Amazon events, is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.