Taiki Naito calls on Takeru for all-Japanese showdown

Taiki Naito looked back to his best at ONE Fight Night 32 this past Friday, June 6. Now he believes he’s once again ready to take on the biggest names in the world.

“Silent Sniper” unleashed a counter-striking clinic versus Johan Estupinan inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium, winning by majority decision. In doing so, he served the Colombian star the first loss of his career. He also gave himself a much needed confidence boost.

Fighting in 4-ounce gloves isn’t Naito’s bread and butter, either. He’s much more accustomed to competing in kickboxing action in the big gloves. That is proven by the #3-ranked status he holds in the flyweight kickboxing division.

And when he looks at that weight bracket, one name comes to mind — former K-1 Champion Takeru Segawa.

“The Natural Born Krusher” has yet to fully show his skills in ONE Championship. This past March at ONE 172, he was blitzed by former ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon in 80 seconds.

There’s no doubt Takeru will be eager to bounce back. There’s also rumblings that ONE Championship will return to Japan later this year. So Naito believes an all-Japanese striking affair on home soil would be a welcomed clash.

“You know, today I fought in Muay Thai, but I usually also fight in kickboxing,” he said after ONE Fight Night 32.

“And in ONE Championship in the ranking right now, number two is Takeru, and I’m the next. So I’d love to fight Takeru as my next opponent.”

Taiki Naito believes ONE Fight Night 32 was make-or-break moment

Despite a 14-bout stint in ONE Championship, flyweight striking star Taiki Naito never felt under more pressure than he did at ONE Fight Night 32.

The Japanese warrior entered the contest on a run of mixed form. He’d win a fight before failing to build on that momentum. But even more recently, he rode a two-fight losing streak into the clash with Johan Estupinan.

He lost a unanimous decision to Dedduanglek Wankhongohm MBK last April at ONE Fight Night 21. And after that, he suffered a crushing third-round knockout defeat to Elias Mahmoudi at ONE Fight Night 24 last August.

Naturally, the 29-year-old feels he could not allow a third setback to take place. Losing could have meant the end of his six-year tenure with ONE.

To combat that, he took a year off, working on his boxing three times a week with renowned coaches to come back better than ever.

Given the contrasting trajectories he and Estupinan were on, Naito knew the odds were stacked against him. It was do-or-die.

But he relied on the body of work and his experience to outdo the Colombian to remind all the doubters why he’s still one of the best in the world.

“I was in two consecutive losses, and I also know that Estupinan has never lost in ONE Championship before,” Naito said.

“It was like my future was being tested with this fight, and I’m so glad, so happy that I could win the fight today.”