WATCH: Get a ringside view of Rodtang and Takeru’s intense stand-off at ONE 169 in Bangkok
The possible marquee showdown between martial arts superstars Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Takeru Segawa further heated up last week in Thailand as they had another intense staredown in the ring.
It took place following the victory of 'The Iron Man' at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug on Nov. 8 at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok. It was the second of such encounters between the two, following the one that took place in September, where 'The Natural Born Crusher' last competed.
ONE Championship shared a video clip from ringside of the latest staredown of the topnotch strikers on its official Instagram account while hyping up their long-awaited battle planned for next year. It captioned its post with:
"Things are HEATING UP. Who's ready for Rodtang and Takeru to collide in 2025?"
The showdown between Rodtang and Takeru has been in the works since the Japanese kickboxing legend joined ONE Championship last year. They were initially scheduled to collide in January this year, but the match was canceled after the Jitmuangnon Gym standout was sidelined by an injury.
Meanwhile, Rodtang was a dominant winner at ONE 169, beating British striker Jacob Smith by unanimous decision in their rematch. He was stripped of the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title he had long held prior to the match for missing weight in the official weigh-ins, but it did stop him from staying potent and giving his opponent another beatdown.
The full replay of ONE 169 is available on demand for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Rodtang says Takeru's game has no defense
Even before their long-awaited showdown, Rodtang Jitmuangnon has already found loopholes in Takeru Segawa's game. In particular, he noticed the defense, or lack thereof, in it, which he looks to capitalize on when they meet.
'The Iron Man' shared this in an interview with Sportskeeda MMA, in line with his latest match at ONE 169 on Nov. 8. He said of the fighting style of 'The Natural Born Crusher':
"He's fast, he has danegrous attacks. But, he has no defense. I feel like he always been like that."
There is no definite date yet on when next year the two will finally touch gloves but both have expressed readiness whenever called up for battle.