Japanese superstar Masaaki Noiri expects slumping Sitthichai to be "more serious than ever" in ONE 167 barnburner
Masaaki Noiri is looking to announce himself in ONE Championship as he is set to make his promotional debut at ONE 167.
Rather than working his way up the ladder fight by fight, the new arrival is aiming to put himself right into the world title picture with a win on June 7.
The Japanese star will be taking on just one of many elite strikers that currently compete in the ONE featherweight kickboxing division.
Sitthichai is a legend of the game who has faced the very best during his time in the promotion, only ever coming up short against the very cream of the crop in his weight class.
However, the Thai veteran is coming off of back-to-back losses and he won't want to find himself falling out of the upper echelon, especially if it means the division's latest addition taking his spot.
In an interview with ONE Championship ahead of his debut, Noiri said that he expects his opponent to be hungry for the win on fight night.
He knows that this win means just as much to Sitthichai as it does him:
"I really think Sitthichai will come with an 'I cannot lose' attitude and be more serious than ever before. He'll come with the mindset of having fought at the top level until now."
Masaaki Noiri is ready to prove his worth
Beating a living legend like Sitthichai is one of the best ways that Masaaki Noiri could possibly introduce himself to ONE Championship fans.
As previously mentioned, the Thai striker has losses on his record but they're only to the absolute best competitors in the world and his accolades speak for themselves.
ONE fans have become very accustomed to seeing him perform which will only make it more impressive if Noiri is able to enter the promotion and take out a big name in his first appearance.
ONE 167 will air live in US prime time on June 7 and is free to watch for North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription.