“My knuckles get a little bit sore” – Alex Roberts says his power is too much to handle in small gloves

Ahead of his ONE Championship debut, Alex Roberts has had a few different aspects that he has had to adapt to before he steps inside the Circle.

At ONE Fight Night 17 he will compete against Roman Kryklia for the inaugural ONE heavyweight Muay Thai world championship.

During his preparations, ‘The Viking’ was taken aback by the kind of power he can possess in the small four-ounce gloves that the ruleset utilizes.

The fighter from down under has needed to taper back his training from time to time in order to ensure that he doesn’t receive any injuries due to the lack of protection that the gloves provide.

At the same time, he told Fight News Australia that he is excited to really unleash and see what kind of damage he can do with those lethal weapons strapped to his giant hands:

“I’ve had to manage how much I use them because my knuckles get a little bit sore because you're punching them so hard. So it's been great to adapt to them and to just you know adapt the style a little bit, to manage the gloves, since you can't just show up anymore.

“And yeah I think I'm ready to rock and roll and I can't wait to get out there and show everyone what I've got in my hands.”

Watch the full interview below:

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Alex Roberts vs. Roman Kryklia all but guaranteed to thrill the watching world

Alex Roberts has got a lot to live up to on his ONE Championship debut because of the match-up that he is stepping into.

ONE light heavyweight kickboxing world champion and ONE Heavyweight World Grand Prix champion Roman Kryklia has been a destructive force inside the Circle.

Stopping the Ukrainian’s win streak will be a big upset but the Aussie striker is more than willing to walk into the fire if necessary.

Muay Thai contests can end at any minute given the small gloves but when it is heavyweights wielding them, you can’t afford to turn away at any moment.

ONE Fight Night 17 will air live and free in U.S. primetime for North American viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.