Watch: 'Sexyama' Yoshihiro Akiyama spars K-1 legend Peter Aerts

Kickboxing great Peter Aerts has been teaching some new skills to Yoshihiro Akiyama. The K-1 legend recently had a sparring session with the ONE Championship fighter also known as 'Sexyama'.

Watch the sparring session between Aerts and Akiyama below:

In the video, the two talk for a few minutes. Peter Aerts is evidently moving from the Netherlands to Tokyo. Akiyama says he is looking forward to sparring with Aerts, even calling him a legend.

The Japanese star typically fights at middleweight, while Aerts spent his career at heavyweight. During the sparring session, Yoshihiro Akiyama can be seen using his speed to dash in and out of range, landing jabs and leg kicks. Meanwhile, Aerts feels him out using long body kicks and jabs. It's clear that Akiyama has issues with the range of the Dutch heavyweight. In between rounds, he says that Aerts is a great counter striker.

In the second round of their session, Peter Aerts can be seen putting more pressure on Akiyama but also giving him opportunities to throw combinations. With body knees and jabs, the Dutchman pushes 'Sexyama' back.

At around the 10:30 mark, Aerts pumps a jab feint and follows it up with a headkick that lands. Akiyama seems very impressed with his skills. 'Sexyama' answers this strike with a body shot of his own, which seems to hurt Aerts. The Dutch fighter promptly lands another headkick in response.

'Sexyama' is coming off a TKO victory at ONE X against Shinya Aoki. At 46 years old, he says he will continue to fight. Aerts is officially retired but leaves behind an incredible legacy.

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Kickboxing royalty Peter Aerts

'The Dutch Lumberjack' Peter Aerts is a kickboxing legend in every sense of the word. He has earned his plaudits through decades of hardships, blood and championships. He is considered one of the all-time greats in kickboxing, having fought the best of the best in his career.

Aerts won three K-1 Grand Prix titles in 1994, 1995 and 1998. This was during the golden era of combat sports in Japan. In 1998, he defeated Swiss karate fighter Andy Hug via a first-round knockout, using a headkick. The event was witnessed live at the Tokyo Dome with over 60,000 fans in attendance.

Aerts made his professional kickboxing debut in 1987 and did not officially retire until 2020. His list of opponents includes heavyweight greats in combat sports, such as K-1 champion Alistair Overeem, UFC champion Maurice Smith, Pride and UFC fighter Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic, kickboxing greats Ernesto Hoost, Semmy Schilt and Remy Bonjasky, GLORY heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven, and others.

Aerts retired with an official record of 108-32-2. He is now moving to Tokyo to help train fighters there.