"Historic trilogy" - Fans applaud the high-stakes rivalry between Alexis Nicolas and Regian Eersel following its end in Bangkok
ONE lightweight kickboxing adversaries Alexis Nicolas and Regian Eersel settled their differences for good at ONE Fight Night 30 last Friday, April 4.
Eersel, the reigning ONE lightweight Muay Thai world champion, was supposed to defend the ONE lightweight kickboxing world championship entering their trilogy bout. However, he was stripped of it for failing the pre-fight hydration test, while Nicolas remained eligible to win back the gold.
Because of their familiarity with each other, their third encounter lived up to the fans' expectations of an all-out war. Unfortunately for 'Barboza', Eersel was just a step better and prevented him from reclaiming the crown via majority decision.
Nicolas took to Instagram after their epic back-and-forth to thank 'The Immortal' for their trilogy.
Check out the post below:
The Mahmoudi Gym affiliate's biggest fans trooped to the comments section to acknowledge their rivalry, writing:
"Historical trilogy. One door closes another one opens, the future is yours my bro. It's just the beginning of your dream life ❤️"
"The result is obviously not the one we would have liked, but you really made us happy."
"These wars are soon just a distant memory, the game starts now 🔥"
"An Amazing Trilogy... Brought so much to the sport, What a way to kickstart your @onechampionship journey much Respect ❤️👊🏽"
![Screenshot of comments. [Alexis Nicolas/Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/04/a6161-17443738658804-1920.jpg?w=500)
Alexis Nicolas remains determined to regain the gold
A second straight defeat to Regian Eersel would have dimmed the lights of any other fighter, but Alexis Nicolas is as steadfast as they come.
In a separate Instagram post, the 26-year-old doubled down on his chase to reclaim the now-vacant ONE lightweight kickboxing world championship. He said in the video:
"The people's champion never dies. The phoenix never dies; the flame is diminished but never extinguished. And believe me, the belt will be back very soon. Barbo is back."