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Filipino-American Muay Thai star Jackie Buntan recently sat down with Sportskeeda MMA to discuss her immediate plans for her fighting future. One of the more interesting bits of the interview was her intention to dip her toes in ONE kickboxing for her return fight.
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Jackie Buntan has been exclusively fighting in the ONE strawweight Muay Thai division and even rose to world title contention. Despite her huge success in the Art of Eight Limbs, the dangerous striker is still willing to venture into unfamiliar waters.
Buntan said:
"Just with the time off and stuff, again I’d love an active year and really being selfish this year and taking the fights that I want. I want to be able to get maybe a three-round fight in, just get back in the ring and then after that, go into kickboxing or whatnot. But I’ve been asking for it since being signed, so I’d love to get a match in for kickboxing even if it’s just a three-round fight just to get back in there."
It's worth noting that Jackie Buntan's teammate, close friend, and sparring partner is Janet Todd, who is the ONE women's atomweight kickboxing world champion. This means she will not be a fish out of water if and when she finally laces up the kickboxing gloves in ONE Championship.
Jackie Buntan primed and ready to return to action after lengthy lay-off
The last time Jackie Buntan fought inside the Circle was a KO win over Diandra Martin at ONE Fight Night 10 in May 2023. Buntan was scheduled to fight Smilla Sundell at ONE Fight Night 14 last September but had to withdraw due to personal reasons.
While some fighters would consider having such lengthy time off detrimental to their careers, Buntan sees it as a good thing.
She told Sportskeeda MMA:
“I’m actually really grateful I took some time off because it brought me into this new year super refreshed, super motivated, super hungry, hence the reason why I wanted it to be a very busy and active year. Like I said earlier, just ready to get back in there."
Whether her lengthy time off from fighting truly yields great results is still yet to be determined. Whether it's Muay Thai or kickboxing, however, we know it will be an absolute banger.
