Constantin “Lioncrusher” Rusu

Constantin Rusu was born into a family that worked in the agriculture industry, but he knew that he was always meant for something else.

Born and raised in the agricultural city of Soroca, Moldova, working the lands have always been the way of life for Rusu’s mother and father. The “Lioncrusher” appeared to be following in his parents’ footsteps. However, he was searching for something more.

Rusu found it in the world of kickboxing. After being introduced to the striking art at age 16, he fell in love with it and devoted himself to the sport. Working with coach Sasha Petcoglo over at Lion Fight Academy, he turned pro in 2016 and became one of the most fearsome kickboxers in the Eastern European scene.

After an up-and-down start to his career, Rusu would win 19 of his next 21 bouts against quality competition, which includes two-time WBC Muay Thai World Champion Cheick Sidibé.

That stretch got him onto ONE Championship’s radar, and he defeated Marouan Toutouh via unanimous decision in his promotional debut in June 2022. He followed that up with an impressive win over former ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Title challenger Islam Murtazaev in a fight where he stepped up on two weeks’ notice.

Now, he looks to put himself into the World Championship mix when he takes on Bogdan Shumarov at ONE Fight Night 12 on Prime Video on July 14!