Capitan To Defend Kickboxing World Title Against Akimoto At ONE X
ONE Championship’s bantamweight kickboxing king will officially return at the organization’s 10-year anniversary show, but in order to keep his gold, he must defeat a challenger who’s been nearly flawless in the sport.
On Saturday, 26 March, ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Capitan Petchyindee will defend his coveted belt against #2-ranked contender Hiroki Akimoto at ONE X in Singapore.
Capitan stormed his way onto the global stage by knocking out his revered Thai compatriot Petchtanong Petchfergus with a shocking right cross in a record-setting six seconds. That earned him his “One Punch Man” nickname and a crack at the divisional gold.
The hard-hitter then knocked out Alaverdi “Babyface Killer” Ramazanov to claim the bantamweight kickboxing strap in January 2021 and defeated Ramazanov’s mentor, Mehdi “Diamond Heart” Zatout, in a five-round thriller eight months later.
But for his next World Title defense, he draws the nearly unbeatable Akimoto.
The Singapore-based Japanese star suffered his first and only career blemish in March 2019, but after making the move up to bantamweight, he’s looked unstoppable.
Akimoto earned a pair of victories over previously ranked contender “Muay Thai Boy” Zhang Chenglong, and this past December, he spoiled “The Tank” Qiu Jianliang‘s highly anticipated ONE debut while snapping the Chinese megastar’s 18-fight winning streak with a unanimous decision.
If the Evolve representative can pull off yet another upset on 26 March, he’ll walk away with gold around his waist.
Stay tuned to ONEFC.com for more details about ONE X.
Read more: Kickboxing Grand Prix Final, Holzken-Murtazaev Confirmed For ONE X
