Wei Rui targets Jonathan Haggerty, Petchtanong for sophomore outing in ONE Championship

The dream debut for Wei Rui materialized at ONE Fight Night 22 on May 3. There, he carved out a unanimous decision win over top-ranked divisional contender and former ONE bantamweight kickboxing world champion Hiroki Akimoto.

This massive triumph occurred inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, and may be enough for him to bypass the line against other contenders in the division for a shot at ONE gold.

Speaking to Sportskeeda MMA after the victory, the multi-time K-1 world champion has already plotted the course of his next bout in the world's largest martial arts organization, and he has two names in mind.

The 32-year-old Wei Rui stated:

"I would like to challenge Jonathan and Petchtanong. If Jonathan doesn't hold the belt, I'm willing to challenge whoever has it."

See the full interview below:

Before appearing for his inaugural fight under the promotion, 'Demon Blade' was already an accomplished kickboxer who tallied an incredible professional record of 69 wins and three losses.

Also, Wei extended his current win streak to 21.

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Wei Rui says Hiroki Akimoto was a hard test for him compared to previous opponents

Even after he bagged the win, Wei Rui was given a reality check by Akimoto because he pushed him to his limit, unlike before when he faced other opponents.

According to him, he couldn't use the same techniques to control the Japanese striking star and was forced to come up with a variety of attacks.

Now that Wei has sent massive shockwaves throughout the division with his grand arrival, he claims that he'll prepare a systematic training plan to get him ready for a potential clash with the reigning two-sport world champion Jonathan Haggerty once he officially gets the world title shot.

North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE Fight Night 22 via the free event replay.