Marat Grigorian and Kosuke Takagi learn ONE SAMURAI Featherweight Kickboxing Tournament fates

ONE Championship has locked in two more collisions for its blockbuster eight-man featherweight kickboxing tournament, and the winner earns a guaranteed shot at gold.

Three-time Glory Kickboxing World Champion Marat Grigorian meets Russian standout Mamuka Usubyan on Friday, August 7, at The Inner Circle 25. The bout streams live in Asia primetime from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Grigorian appeared to place himself at the front of the queue with his most recent performance. He needed less than two minutes to knock out Kaito at ONE SAMURAI 1 in April. The win improved his record to 70-14 and extended his winning streak to three. It also put the veteran firmly back in the World Title conversation.

The Hemmers Gym representative has already shared the ring with reigning champion Superbon three times across his career. The tournament now offers him a clear road toward a fourth.

Usubyan, unbeaten across four ONE Championship appearances, represents a serious threat to that plan. The Armenia-born Russian most recently defeated Enzo Kartoum by unanimous decision on all three scorecards. The win extended his perfect promotional record to 4-0 and his overall mark to 24-2.

Kosuke Takagi debuts against battle-tested Luo Chao

The very next night, after Marat Grigorian collides with Mamuka Usubyan, Japan’s Kosuke Takagi collides with China’s Luo Chao at ONE SAMURAI 2 on Saturday, August 8, live from EBARA WAVE Arena Ota in Tokyo, Japan. The 28-year-old Takagi arrives with a professional record of 8-2. He has four knockouts and steps into ONE Championship for the first time straight into a title-eliminator tournament.

His opponent carries a 43-11 record and 18 knockouts. He already navigated the promotion’s developmental league to reach the main roster with a hard-fought split-decision win over Brazil’s Denis Souza Jr. in May.