Chinese veteran Wei Rui set for ONE Championship debut against Hiroko Akimoto on back of 20-bout winning streak
- The 34-year-old will appear in a bantamweight kickboxing contest at ONE Fight Night 22
- Wei’s last defeat came in 2018, in a career that has seen him fight in Europe, America, Australia for just three defeats
Wei Rui makes his ONE Championship debut in Bangkok this weekend, but the Chinese fighter is no rookie.
The 34-year-old, who made his professional debut more than a decade ago, goes into his bantamweight kickboxing contest against Hiroko Akimoto at ONE Fight Night 22 on the back of a 20-fight winning streak.
Wei’s last defeat came in 2018, when he was knocked out by Koya Urabe in a K-1 super lightweight title fight. In the intervening years, he has enjoyed sustained success at home and abroad, and in the year before his defeat held the K-1 title in Japan.
A career that has seen him fight opponents in Europe, America, Australia and elsewhere includes just three defeats, and comes with a mindset that does not fear failure.
“There will always be winners and losers, and I will be very open to the results,” Wei said. “Because, if I chase a result, the pressure will actually be very high. So in every match, I keep a normal mind, and failure is acceptable to me.”
While Wei has fought and beaten high-profile Japanese fighters in the past, Akimoto is a former ONE bantamweight kickboxing champion, and with a greater punch will be no pushover.
There will be a clash of styles too, with Wei putting his sanda background up against his Japanese rival’s karate experience.
“I think I’m more agile and faster than him,” Wei said. “He hits harder, and with output in his striking offence.
“Karate has more kicking techniques, so I think he has advantage on that. As a sanda student, my movement will be more agile.”
During his career, Wei has fought some big names from the world of Muay Thai, although always under kickboxing rules, and has racked up wins over Petchpanomrung Kiatmoo9, Thanonchai Thanakorngym, Kongnapa Weerasakreck and Pakorn Sakyotin.
Two of his three losses came at the hands of Thai opponents with Kaiwanlek Tor Laksong and Lerdsila Chumpairtour both beating him in 2014.
It is a rivalry the Chinese fighter would be willing to renew and he is open to the possibility of fighting under Muay Thai rules.
“I want to stay focused on the current fight now. If it’s a perfect fight, I will consider Muay Thai later.”
