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Leo Pinto is set for his sophomore ONE Championship appearance this Friday at ONE: NO SURRENDER II in Bangkok, Thailand.
The Frenchman will be taking on Mehdi “Diamond Heart” Zatout in a ONE Super Series bantamweight kickboxing clash, and he's impressed with what he's seen from his adversary.
“Even though I am a lot younger than him, I will not underestimate him. Age is not an obstacle for Zatout,” the 26-year-old Pinto said of his 36-year-old foe.
“He is quick and fit. He has very speedy punches and kicks. He also adjusts his style with whoever the opponent is.”
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While Leo Pinto has never faced Zatout, he has some business to settle with the veteran. In his promotional debut this past January, the young fighter dropped a tough decision to Adam Noi, who is a student of Zatout's at Venum Training Camp.
“The result was not what I expected,” Pinto said. “I accept that I felt too confident and wanted to use combinations until I dropped my guard and got too careless to protect myself.”
After reflecting on that loss, Leo Pinto is ready to make adjustments against Zatout while continuing to hone his skills under the kickboxing rule set.
“I have to adjust a lot to fight in kickboxing. I have trained around one-and-a-half months, and I will train really hard until event day,” Pinto said.
“I have my brother [Antoine] and my friends like [ONE kickboxing star] Superbon and his trainer to help me and hold pads. I concentrate more on protecting myself since the experience in my last fight.”
Leo Pinto certainly wants the victory, but he also has a close relationship with the man who will try to make it 2-0 for Venum Training Camp.
“Even though I respect Zatout, I know that we will do our best to give a good fight for our fans,” Pinto said.
“It doesn’t matter – win or lose, we will always be brothers.”
Tune in to watch Leo Pinto clash with Zatout at ONE: NO SURRENDER II this Friday, 14 August, by downloading the ONE Super App. You can also catch the action live on Hotstar or Star Sports Select 2 at 6 p.m. India Standard Time (IST).
