ONE Championship: Aliff reveals he wasn’t at 100 percent in dominant victory over Elmehdi El Jamari: “I was actually sick”

21-year-old rising Muay Thai star Aliff Sor Dechapan of Malaysia and Thailand revealed that he wasn't exactly at his best in a tough fight last weekend at home in Bangkok.

Aliff turned in an impressive performance in scoring a hard-earned unanimous decision win over tough Moroccan Elmehdi El Jamari at ONE Fight Night 32: Nakrob vs. Jaosuayai on Prime Video.

And although the young Malaysian-Thai phenom looked great in the ring, he is the first to admit he wasn't operating at peak ability.

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He said on Instagram:

"I was actually sick and because of that, I played it safe and fought for points. If I weren’t sick, I wouldn’t have anything else on my mind but a knockout."

Aliff believes that had he been a hundred percent heading into the fight, he would have gotten El Jamari out of there much earlier.

ONE Fight Night 32: Nakrob vs. Jaosuayai on Prime Video went down live from the iconic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Saturday, June 7. Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action via replay on-demand with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

Aliff Sor Dechapan ready for gargantuan task against Prajanchai PK Saenchai: "I will have to train ten times harder"

Not long after his gutsy unanimous decision victory over Elmehdi El Jamari at ONE Fight Night 32: Nakrob vs. Jaosuayai on Prime Video last weekend, Aliff Sor Dechapan was faced off against the division's top dog in two-sport king and reigning ONE strawweight Muay Thai world champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai.

This indicates that a showdown between Aliff and the pound-for-pound great is likely next up.

The 21-year-old understands the tough task ahead and is already mentally preparing himself.

He said on IG:

"To fight Prajanchai, I will have to train ten times harder. It won’t be easy."

Aliff added:

"Prajanchai’s advantage over me is his speed. He’s really fast. Besides that, his age, experience, and everything else are his advantages."

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding Aliff Sor Dechapan's next fight.

About the author

Dan is an MMA writer with 10+ years of overall experience. Before his ongoing tenure at Sportskeeda, Dan got the opportunity to be at the forefront of the sport by contributing to ONE Championship and Fight Game Asia. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology.

Dan’s connection to MMA started during the early days of the UFC and ONE Championship. He previously practiced boxing and ranks Demetrious Johnson, Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, Jon Jones, and Fedor Emelianenko as the top five MMA fighters of all time.

He has covered several events onsite and on the ground for ONE Championship and hopes to continue doing so. He ensures that he churns out accurate articles by citing only legitimate sources and getting firsthand accounts through exclusive interviews whenever required.

Dan feels MMA fighter pay seems like an issue because it often gets compared to what fighters earn in boxing but that MMA will eventually catch up in the future.

His other interests include soccer and video games.

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Edited by C. Naik