Tagir Khalilov wants to shake up the rankings against fellow top-5 flyweight kickboxing star Taiki Naito: "We can fight with him"
After his victory against Liao Shixu on June 6 at ONE Fight Night 32, a catchweight Muay Thai battle inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Russia, Russian contender Tagir Khalilov has requested an opponent for his next bout.
Khalilov spoke with seasoned journalist Nick Atkin for a post-fight interview and named Japanese striking star Taiki Naito as a potential opponent under the kickboxing rules, as he declared:
"Naito also called me out, he told me to come fight [under] kickboxing rules. I accepted, but they gave him a Muay Thai fight. I hope he wins this fight, and we can fight with him in kickboxing rules."
Watch Tagir Khalilov's interview here:
This matchup seems more likely now since the 'Silent Sniper' also won his match against Johan Estupinan via majority decision.
A match between Khalilov and Naito could potentially produce the next world title contender against the reigning ONE flyweight kickboxing king, Superlek Kiatmoo9.
Tagir Khalilov reveals his new motivation as a father and his involvement in community projects
'Samingpri' also talked about how fatherhood added more motivation and fire inside of him during his recent interview with ONE Championship.
According to him, all the things he does now are about his son, and it helps me to strive to be better everyday, as he said:
"Yes, I became a father, and that's been a huge motivation. Everything I do now is with my son in mind. I've always been involved in social work and community projects, and I still am.
The Archangel Michel and Samingpri Muay Thai Gym representative also stated that he has been active in social work, as he added:
Sometimes, it's non-stop - morning to night, with barely any time to rest - but I've learned how to recover when I need to. After this, I'm planning to take a proper break for at least a week, just to spend time with my family."
North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action at ONE Fight Night 32 via the free event replay.