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Rade Opacic always wants to put on the best show possible, and he wants to do the same when he lands in Tokyo this Sunday.
The Serbian star will take on Iranian juggernaut Iraj Azizpour in a heavyweight kickboxing match at ONE 165: Superlek vs. Takeru on January 28 at Ariake Arena. ONE 165 will be the first time ONE Championship holds a fight card in Japan since 2019, and Opacic wants to put on a proper barnburner for the fans in attendance.
In an interview with the promotion, Opacic said Azizpour is the perfect opponent to have an absolute slugfest against. He also expects to feel Japanese fans' love for exciting fighters.
Rade Opacic said:
“Iraj is a banger. He likes to fight. I like to fight. So let’s give the fans in Tokyo what they want – a real kickboxing fight. And it’s amazing we’re fighting in Tokyo, the home of kickboxing. It’s a big thing, especially for us kickboxers because literally kickboxing started there.”
The 6-foot-7 Opacic is one of the craftiest heavyweight strikers on the planet, and he used that speed and agility to rack up five knockouts in his total of six wins under ONE Championship.
Azizpour, meanwhile, has three wins in the promotion and one knockout victory.
ONE 165 is available live on pay-per-view at watch.onefc.com.
Rade Opacic wants to use ONE 165 as first step to world title
Undoubtedly, every fighter wants to win a world title, and Rade Opacic is one of them.
The Serbian behemoth is one of the most intimidating and entertaining fighters in ONE Championship, and a win over Azizpour would lead him closer to a world title fight in the promotion.
He posted on Instagram:
“One by one towards the belt 💣 Let’s put on a show in Tokyo.”
Although ONE Championship doesn’t have a heavyweight kickboxing world title, yet, Opacic could eventually challenge Roman Kryklia for the ONE heavyweight Muay Thai world title.
There is also the possibility of ONE Championship instituting a Grand Prix for a potential ONE heavyweight kickboxing world title.
