‘It’s Going To Be Razor-Close’ – Superbon Predicts ONE SAMURAI Featherweight Kickboxing Tournament Finalists

Superbon will soon find out which two contenders remain in the race for the next shot at his ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Title. The ONE SAMURAI Featherweight Kickboxing Tournament continues at ONE SAMURAI 4, which goes down live at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, on Saturday, October 17. That evening, in a pair of semifinal matches, Armenian legend Marat Grigorian will face Chinese sensation Luo Chao and Japan’s own Masaaki Noiri will battle Iranian knockout artist Mohammad Siasarani. View this post on Instagram The eventual tournament winner will earn a World Title opportunity against Superbon, giving the reigning king an obvious interest in how the final four shakes out. Asked to make his picks, the Thai dynamo favors two former opponents to advance to the final. He said: “I think Marat takes his match. The other semifinal is a tough one to call – it’s pure 50-50. But if I had to pick, fighting on home turf gives Noiri a slight edge to pull off the win. “So, if I really have to choose, I’d say Marat and Noiri. Though honestly, that Noiri versus Siasarani matchup is super close.” View this post on Instagram Superbon knows both men well. The Thai has faced Grigorian three times in his career, with the Armenian scoring a 29-second knockout in their first meeting at a Chinese event in February 2018. Superbon answered back with consecutive unanimous decision victories at ONE X in March 2022 and ONE Friday Fights 58 in April 2024. He also defeated Noiri by unanimous decision in their ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Title unification bout at ONE 173 last November. View this post on Instagram Grigorian brings vast experience into his semifinal against Luo and enters the contest on a four-bout winning streak. Meanwhile, his Chinese opponent is riding a three-bout winning streak and earned his place in the final four by outpointing Kosuke “Unstoppable Phoenix” Takagi. But as Superbon mentioned, the opposite semifinal is more difficult for him to call. Noiri avenged his previous defeat to “Spirit Dragon” Liu Mengyang with a dramatic first-round knockout in the quarterfinals of the ONE SAMURAI 2 main event in August. Siasarani would stop Kaito Ono in the night’s co-main event, finishing him in the first round with a head kick to remain unbeaten in kickboxing under the ONE Championship banner. The 36-year-old Thai explained: “It’s going to be razor-close. But with it being a home game, if it comes down to a 50-50 fight, the home crowd favorite usually gets the benefit of the doubt.” View this post on Instagram Superbon Has No Preference Between Familiar Rivals If Marat Grigorian and Masaaki Noiri both make it through their ONE SAMURAI Featherweight Kickboxing Tournament semifinal matchups, Superbon would see two familiar faces in the final. The eventual winner will earn a shot at his ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Title, and both men have already shared the ring with the Thai superstar. But Superbon has no preference over which athlete wins the tournament and gets the next crack at his crown. He said: “I’m fine with either of them, it doesn’t really matter. I’ve already fought both, so whoever comes through – Marat or Noiri – is fine by me. I just want to get back in the ring and fight, honestly.” View this post on Instagram Even after naming his favored finalists, Superbon was reluctant to make the prediction sound definitive. The Thai joked that his previous picks have given fans plenty of ammunition before ultimately sticking with Grigorian and Noiri. Either outcome would carry significant legacy implications. A Grigorian tournament victory would set up a fourth career meeting between the two longtime rivals, while a Noiri triumph would give the Japanese star a chance to avenge his ONE 173 World Title loss. Ultimately, these next few bouts will help shape the pecking order at the top of the promotion’s featherweight kickboxing division. He said: “Whenever I make a call, people just love to grill me. But if forced to pick, I’m leaning toward Marat and Noiri as the final two.” View this post on Instagram Source