Takeru has been training at the Boxing Works Gym in Los Angeles. It is home to current ONE Championship stars Janet Todd and Jackie Buntan and the K-1 veteran has set tongues wagging with a video.
In it Takeru can be seen sparring while wearing ONE Championship gloves. His sparring partner also seems to be wearing MMA gloves, albeit the padded type that are used in training sessions and amateur fights.
It is an interesting choice of attire and has got fans questioning whether Takeru could be about to sign with ONE Championship:
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Training trip
Janet Todd is the reigning ONE Championship atomweight kickboxing champion and interim atomweight Muay Thai champion. She will be looking to unify the latter title when she faces Allycia Rodrigues at ONE Fight Night 8 next month.
Her training partner Jackie Buntan fought for the inaugural strawweight Muay Thai title but came up short on that occasion, dropping a decision to Smilla Sundell. But the success of these two female fighters has helped establish Boxing Works as one of the top Muay Thai camps in the US.
Having recovered from the disappointment of his defeat to Tenshin Nasukawa last year Takeru has been travelling the world. He spent time training in Thailand and also got involved with the Japanese broadcast team during the World Cup in Qatar.
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Free agent
But while Tenshin recently confirmed his pro boxing debut there is no word yet on when Takeru will be back in action. His K-1 contract has expired and it is difficult to imagine any other Japanese promotion being able to find suitable opponents to tempt him back.
With Glory more focused on the Dutch market ONE Championship looks like the most viable destination for one of the best kickboxers on the planet. But the sight of Takeru wearing MMA gloves has led to speculation he could be considering a change of career.
He would certainly not be short of suitors if he did decide to switch to MMA, although the 31 year old would need to put a lot of work in if he wanted to do it. This is the first time Takeru has ever been pictured in ONE Championship gloves, it might not be the last.
