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Elipitua Siregar has a new opponent in ONE Championship: Heavy Hitters after Robin Catalan tested positive for COVID-19. Siregar will now be battling Senzo Ikeda, and the Indonesian fighter feels that he can use his youth against the veteran competitor.
Ikeda was also originally scheduled to face Jeremy Miado. However, the Filipino strawweight has now joined the shortlist of fighters who have contracted the virus, including Murat Aygun, Elias Mahmoudi, Walter Goncalves and Leandro Ataides.
During an interview with Sportskeeda, Siregar stated that he considers himself fortunate to have a chance to fight in these difficult times:
"It's very unfortunate that Robin had to pull out. I was excited as I had prepared my training and strategy specifically for him. However, as a pro who hasn't had a fight in two years due to the pandemic, I consider myself very lucky to have a new opponent and I'm ready to fight anyone."
'The Magician' now has less than 48 hours to adjust his game plan and review tapes of his new opponent. In hindsight, the 25-year-old fighter sees his age as an advantage over the 39-year-old Ikeda:
"I don't know much about Senzo. I know he's from Japan and has been in the fighting scene for a while. Very experienced. However, I’m a wrestler from a young age. I believe my physical superiority, power, and stamina would be key to winning this fight."
Elipitua Siregar is looking for ground and pound in ONE Championship: Heavy Hitters
The age gap between the two fighters is wide but Elipitua Siregar has more experience fighting in ONE Championship. He has fought five times in the promotion to Ikeda's three.
Siregar has had all of his professional fights in Asia's premier MMA organization. He brings a 4-1 record to his match against Senzo Ikeda, with three of his wins coming by way of submission.
'The Magician' started his career in May 2018 and won his first three fights in ONE Championship, defeating Dodi Mardian, Phat Soda and Muhammad Imran.
Siregar tasted his first career loss at the hands of Pengshuai Liu in February 2019. However, he managed to bounce back with a submission victory against Eka Aprilianto later that year. It has been more than two years since the Indonesian fighter last competed in the cage.
Better known as a submission artist, Siregar would like to finish his upcoming ONE Championship bout with his second knockout victory. He predicts it will happen through ground and pound.
