“Will the fight really happen?” - Thai megastar Rodtang teases massive super fight against towering phenom Nabil Anane

Thai megastar Rodtang Jitmuangnon just teased what could be the most entertaining Muay Thai fight of the year. Taking to Instagram, the former ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion cheekily shared a photo of himself in a standoff with towering phenom Nabil Anane in the streets of Tokyo, Japan.

The photo was taken during ONE Championship's press tour for ONE 172 this March, in a card featuring Rodtang and Anane in separate super fights at the historic Saitama Super Arena.

Rodtang posted:

"Will the fight really happen? 😂"

Rodtang and Anane are coming off career-shifting victories in ONE Championship's return to Japan, with both fighters taking massive wins with incredible storylines attached.

Anane, the ONE interim bantamweight Muay Thai world champion, scored a dominant unanimous decision win over Superlek Kiatmoo9, the ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion, at ONE 172.

The Thai-Algerian superstar's victory over Superlek was career vindication after he lost his ONE Championship debut against the Thai superstar in June 2023.

With his victory over Superlek, Anane pushed his winning streak to seven straight wins and improved to 7-1 in the promotion.

Rodtang, meanwhile, nabbed possibly the greatest highlight reel knockout of his storied career.

'The Iron Man' and Japanese icon Takeru Segawa squared off in a flyweight kickboxing match to headline the super card, which many consider a pivotal moment in the sport.

Hype was immeasurable heading into their ONE 172 clash, but Rodtang decided to end the fight in just 80 seconds.

After absorbing a terrifying right hook from Takeru, Rodtang retaliated with a deadly left hook that the former three-division K-1 Kickboxing champion couldn't get up from.

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Rodtang details the emotional impact his win over Takeru meant to him

Rodtang's victory over Takeru Segawa wasn't an ordinary mark on his legendary career.

During the ONE 172 post-event press conference, Rodtang said taking out Takeru was redemption for his past blunder in his career.

Rodtang suffered arguably the biggest blow in his ONE Championship tenure when he was stripped of the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title after missing weight for his supposed world title defense against Jacob Smith at ONE 169.

Despite taking the win over Smith, Rodtang said he was still in the doldrums and only his ONE 172 win against Takeru took him out of his miserable state.

He said:

"It tells me that I have to work harder, I have to wake up in the morning and have to train hard, and I have to do anything that I can to get that belt back. I felt like this was a bad dream, but now the answer clearly shows that I have found success again."