'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Japanese kickboxing icon Masaaki Noiri believes his paths will cross with reigning ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion Tawanchai. On Friday, June 7, Noiri will make his highly anticipated ONE Championship debut when he steps inside the Circle at Bangkok's Impact Arena for a clash with eight-time kickboxing and Muay Thai titleholder Sitthichai Sitsonpeenong.
The bout will be one of many massive matchups at ONE 167, which will air exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in the United States and Canada.
Speaking with the South China Morning Post ahead of his ONE Championship premiere, Masaaki Noiri spoke about the possibility of sharing the Circle with one of the hottest fighters on the ONE roster today — Tawanchai.
"I don’t think I’ll fight Tawanchai in Muay Thai rules but in kickboxing, for sure, Noiri said. "I have a strong feeling I can beat Tawanchai. I have great confidence in a fight with Tawanchai."
Sitthichai planning bounce back with a big win over the debuting Masaaki Noiri
As a former two-weight K-1 world champion, claiming the promotion's world GP super lightweight and welterweight championships, Masaaki Noiri is undoubtedly one of the best kickboxers on the planet. But he'll face a tough test in his first outing on martial arts' biggest global stage.
Ranked in the top five in both the featherweight kickboxing and Muay Thai divisions, Sitthichai has gone toe-to-toe with some of the biggest fighters in the world in both four-ounce and eight-ounce gloves. That includes scraps with the likes of Superbon, Chingiaz Allazov, Marat Grigorian, and Tawanchai.
In January, Sitthichai came up short in his bid to become the interim featherweight kickboxing world champion, suffering a nasty third-round KO at the hands of the aforementioned Marat Grigorian.
Sitthichai will look to bounce back against Noiri and re-establish himself as one of the division's top contenders.
ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE 167 live and for free via Amazon Prime Video in U.S. primetime on Friday, June 7.
