ONE Championship Japan has announced that Masaaki Noiri, 30, has signed a multi-fight contract with the promotion. The date of his debut is not known yet, but Chatri Sityodtong has talked about plans to return to Japan in September for a potential Rodtang vs. Takeru fight.
The former two-weight K-1 champion made his departure from K-1 public last month. After leaving the K-1 associated gym 'KREST' together with his coach Masakazu Watanabe – and joining Takeru's 'TEAM VASILEUS' – fans already speculated to see Noiri partner up with the Singaporean MMA giant.
The Japanese fighter, who's been with K-1 since his teenage years, is known for his flashy fighting style and has accumulated an impressive highlight reel over his storied career. With wins over Koya Urabe, Kaew Fairtex, Rukiya Anpo, Minoru Kimura, and Liam Harrison, Noiri joins the division's strongest fighters in ONE Championship.
Right after the news drop, Noiri spoke up on social media about his ambitions to become the best in "the final chapter" of his career.
"As announced in the official release, I have signed with ONE Championship, the top-standing martial arts promotion.
If I want to become the strongest in the world, as I believe, this is the stage I must take on. I have finally arrived.
This marks the start of the final chapter for fighter Masaaki Noiri.
It's exciting because it's a stage filled with only tough competitors."
As it's likely that Noiri will compete in ONE's Featherweight division, he'll be a prime candidate for the recently announced Grand Prix.
