Rodtang Jitmuangnon likes to work his way up, beginning with brutal body shots that end up taking his opponent’s mind off protecting the one thing that’s most important. The head.
Petchdam Petchyindee Academy found this out the hard way on Friday as ONE Championship returned to action in Bangkok and Rodtang held on to his flyweight Muay Thai world championship with a majority decision from the judges.
The 23-year-old champ (263-42-10) landed low – and heavy – early on, then kept finding his way through the Petchdam (96-17-7) defences, rocking his head back time and again. It was a show of sheer aggression from the get-go and the result was never in doubt, really, through a wildly entertaining all-action bout.
“Overall, I consider this to be a good battle,” the champ said. “I’ve been off this stage for a long time, so I knew in the beginning, it would be a bit stiff.”
Petchdam is only 22 years old himself so ahead for fight fans might be a rivalry for the ages. He tried to land the roundhouse left foot that has become his calling card but Rodtang was wise to that caper, and kept leaning left and right and away. And then returning with some big shots of his own.
“I wanted to hit him hard and prevent his left leg from getting me so this plan worked,” said Rodtang. “I want to thank ONE for the chance to fight during this Covid time. I’m not tired and can fight again soon.”
It was a big night for Rodtang. He headlined ONE’s first major card since King of the Jungle in Singapore back on February 28, he won, and he’d watched on from behind the scenes as his girlfriend Stamp Fairtex (5-0) – no slouch when it comes to the “Art of Eight Limbs” – continued her rise in the world of MMA, with an easy first-round TKO over the mismatched fellow Thai, Sunisa Srisen (3-1)
“We’ve been working hard together and we encourage each other all the time,” he said.
There was a sense that the guards were officially changed at the top of featherweight division as the current king Petchmorakot Petchyindee Academy (162-34-2, one no contest) outworked the legend that is Yodsanklai IWE Fairtex (202-74-4) to retain his crown.
The 26-year-old Petchmorakot has been carving his way through the greats of modern Muay Thai – the great Saenchai among them – and had said he needed a win over the 35-year-old Yodsanklai to cement his own legacy in the sport.
It took him a full round to warm to the task as the veteran Yodsanklai landed a few early, with his trademark heavy hands going to work. But Petchmorakot managed to avoid getting tangled up too much, and with his longer range – and legs – there were enough points on the board to edge out Yodsanklai at the bell.
“I'm very happy that I beat a champion,” said Petchmorakot. “But I was still not quite satisfied. Next time will be better prepared. My plan was to walk into him with my knee first to avoid the clinch and his fists.”
ONE’s Super Series also threw some kick-boxing into the mix on Friday, matching two more local legends in Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong (124-32-5), on debut for the organisation, against Superbon Banchamek (111-34).
The featherweights have won about all there is to win across the various promotions in Asia and it was Superbon who took the unanimous nod from the judges to make the lifetime score between the pair read 2-1.
The other MMA bout on the card was a catchweight (67kgs) that saw rangy Brazilian Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade (3-2) keep New Zealand’s Mark “Tyson” Abelardo (19-8) out of reach until early in the second round. He then took matters to the ground, worked him over and slipped in a rear-naked choke at 1:11 of round two that put the Kiwi to sleep.
Kicking things off was the seventh edition of Panpayak Jitmuangnon (230-40-4) and Superlek Kiatmoo9’s personal epic, the two local Muay Thai stars meeting in a flyweight bout that went the way of Superlek (122-28-2) via unanimous decision. Lifetime the record between the pair now stands at two wins for Superlek, four for Panpayak, and a draw.
The event was held in a fan-free Impact Arena with the ONE commentary team beaming in from various bases across the region, such are the nuances of “live” events in these times of COVID-19.
Rich Franklin and Steve Dawson were manning the fort in Singapore, while colour commentator Mitch Chilson chimed in from Manila.
Then there was that main man Michael Schiavello, tucked away way down there in Melbourne but still, somehow, booming out from across the many miles between us all.
“Open the fridge – he’s out cold!” Schiavello bellowed as Andrade choked out Abelardo.
And it was almost like ONE had never been away.
