'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Nabil Anane was utterly gutted after losing his ONE Championship debut against the mighty Superlek Kiatmoo9 in 2023. While receiving some unfavorable comments from his detractors admittedly hurt the 21-year-old star, he was more devastated after letting his family down.
In a recent interview on Nickynachat's YouTube channel, Anane revealed that his doting mother, who never watched his fights live before, supported his son in his first foray into the home of martial arts.
The interim ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion shared:
"I trained very hard for that fight. So, I was sad by the outcome. At that time, my mother came to watch me fight. My mother has never come to watch me fight. So when I lost, it felt like a big disappointment. I lost by knockout for the first time. I told myself, why can I only do this much?"
Trending
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Nabil Anane was thrown to the deep end at ONE Friday Fights 22, where he courageously took on one of the best pound-for-pound strikers in the world. It was a humbling lesson for the Team Mehdi Zatout athlete, who learned what he needed to succeed at the highest levels following a first-round loss.
Needless to say, the Algerian-Thai sensation didn't let that setback define him and turned that pain into motivation to achieve his full potential.
Nabil Anane says beating Superlek was a full-circle moment for his career
Since that fateful encounter with Superlek, Nabil Anane rose from the ashes and won six straight bouts against some of the best strikers in the world. The 6-foot-4 warrior captured the interim bantamweight Muay Thai gold with a knockout of Nico Carrillo to begin the year, and earned himself a rematch with 'The Kicking Machine'.
In one of the biggest upsets in recent memory, Anane exorcised his demons and handed Superlek a three-round beatdown at ONE 172 last March to get his sweet taste of redemption.
"I was sure that I could do better than before. I'm sure that it won't be like the first fight. My mindset, I set it not to be like the first round [of the first fight]," Anane said in the same interview.
Watch the full interview:
