SUMMARY
- Wei Rui made his ONE Championship debut at ONE Fight Night 22.
- After beating Hiroki Akimoto, Rui reveals his ambitious future plans.
Decorated former K-1 Champion Wei Rui came to ONE with plans to shine on the global stage, and he cleared the first hurdle at ONE Fight Night 22 on Prime Video this past weekend.
“Demon Blade” outpointed former ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Hiroki Akimoto in his promotional debut on May 3 after three pulsating rounds of action at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
The fight wasn’t without its challenges given the caliber of his opposition, but Wei was reasonably satisfied with his performance when answering questions after the fight.
“I think I just passed this test. I [will] try my best to adjust to the ring in ONE Championship. And I feel like next time, I will perform better,” he said.
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“Before they announced the result, I wasn’t 100 percent confident that I would win. But I still believed everything went well for me to get the victory… This is my debut in ONE Championship, and I think it wasn’t really [my best showing]. But I’m super motivated now. I will continue to focus on training, and I will try harder the next time. I will be back.”
Wei signed with ONE to much fanfare earlier this year after amassing a staggering 69-3 record.
Wei Rui eyes Jonathan Haggerty showdown after ONE Fight Night 22 win
Now that he has defeated Hiroki Akimoto at ONE Fight Night 22, bantamweight kickboxing superstar Wei Rui has World Title glory on his mind. The 34-year-old feels that he should be next to challenge two-sport king Jonathan “The General” Haggerty for his ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title.
“I think I am qualified to be the next belt challenger. Because, as you know, Hiroki used to be the champion, and I beat him. That means I can definitely [challenge for] the belt,” he said.
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“Challenging the champion, of course, is not an easy thing to do. I have to prepare a lot, and I think, in the next stage, I will focus on my training. I will follow a long-term, systematic training plan.”
Haggerty, however, is locked in to defend his bantamweight Muay Thai crown in the meantime. The British star faces ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek Kiatmoo9 at ONE 168: Denver when ONE Championship makes its highly anticipated return to the United States on September 6.