Two-sport king Regian Eersel says he views every world title defense as a fight against 'the most dangerous guy'
Regian Eersel is best known as 'The Immortal' to the combat sports world, but the Dutch-Surinamese striker believes he is far from being an indestructible force when tackling each of his fights on the global stage.
At ONE Fight Night 21 on April 5 in American primetime, the two-sport king puts his lightweight kickboxing gold on the line against Frenchman Alexis Nicolas inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Although the Amsterdam-based fighter is riding a 22-match win streak that dates back to March 2016, he prefers to see himself as equal to those who stand across from him inside the Circle.
Regian Eersel told ONE Championship:
"I look at everybody they put in front of me as the most dangerous guy because the one in front of me is the one who is trying to beat me."
Perhaps that disciplined mindset has taken the Sityodtong Amsterdam representative heads and shoulders above his peers.
'The Immortal' holds tonnes of advantages over Nicolas, but the challenger is ready to swarm the divisional king with aggression and firepower to walk out of his sophomore fight in the promotion with the divisional gold.
Regian Eersel lists his advantages over Nicolas
Regian Eersel's rather toned-down approach ahead of his next assignment under the ONE banner does not mean the two-sport world champion will underplay what he does best — put on a striking clinic.
The 31-year-old recognizes where he holds a trump card over the French striker, who aims to make it back-to-back wins after debuting with a dominant showing versus Magomed Magomedov at ONE Friday Fights 47 this past January.
In the same interview, Regian Eersel added:
"My biggest advantage I think is my experience, my pressure going forward, and my aggression. I think he will struggle with that."
North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can catch ONE Fight Night 21 live in U.S. primetime on April 5. Check your local listing for more details.