“Already one of the best ever” - Fans stoked for the arrival of Japanese kickboxing superstar Masaaki Noiri in ONE
ONE Championship fans are thrilled with the signing of Japanese kickboxing icon Masaaki Noiri.
Last month, ONE announced that they had signed Noiri to a deal, making him the newest edition to the promotion's bustling kickboxing division which already includes K-1's only three-division world champion, Takeru Segawa. At just 30 years old, Noiri is in the prime of his career, leading many to believe it's just a matter of time before he wraps 26 pounds of ONE gold around his waist.
"Driven by greatness! What are the chances of Masaaki Noiri becoming a ONE World Champion?"
Fans lit up the comments section on Instagram, sharing their excitement over the news of Noiri signing with ONE.
"Hes already one of the best ever. Look at the beating he gave Liam Harrison."
"Masaaki will put on great shows."
"@onechampionship is making a great move to sign up all the K1 superstars, to relive kickboxing and especially Asian kickboxing."
"Hiroki Akimoto. Takeru Segawa. Masaaki Noiri. 3 top Japanese kickboxers. Just one guy is missing it's Kaito."
Masaaki Noiri is as decorated as they come
Masaaki Noiri has found success in every promotion he has competed under, including Krush, GLORY Kickboxing, and, of course, K-1. Competing in his native Japan, he captured the K-1 World GP super lightweight championship as well as the World GP welterweight title. Noiri also won the 2021 K-1 Welterweight World Grand Prix Tournament.
That same year, Combat Press ranked him as the No. 1 super-featherweight kickboxer in the world — a ranking he held onto until March 2023.
Overall, Noiri has won 49 career fights with 25 of them coming by way of knockout dating back to his professional debut in 2007.
Are you excited to see Masaaki Noiri make his ONE Championship debut later this year? More importantly, who would you like to see him face when he steps inside the Circle for the very first time?