Thanh Le addresses the possibility of losing to Tang Kai, martial arts’ influence on his life

ONE Featherweight World Champion Thanh Le is set to defend his belt against streaking Chinese national Tang Kai at ONE 160 on August 26. Set to take place in the Singapore Indoor Stadium, ONE 160 is the first half of an epic doubleheader that will go down on back-to-back days.

Also unbeaten in the ONE circle, Kai earned first-round knockouts in his last three bouts against Ryogo Takahashi, Yoon Chang Min, and Kim Jae Woong to secure an opportunity to challenge for ONE gold.

While speaking at a ONE 160 virtual press conference, Le talked about his upcoming clash with the No. 1 ranked featherweight, letting the world know that win or lose, fighting for his family is all the motivation he needs:

“He can go out there and knock me out in 10 seconds and guess what? I'm gonna be right back. I'm gonna be working my way right back up and I'm gonna get back in the ring and I'm gonna do me. Because I do this for me. I do this for my family.”

Speaking to Chinese media, Le discussed the impact that martial arts has had on his life and credits it for being the husband and the father that he is today:

“This is something that makes me the man that I am. That's what martial arts has done -- turn me into the man that I am, turn me into the father and the husband that I am.”

Thanh Le refuses to let the pressure of the moment get the best of him

Thanh Le has a lot to lose in his upcoming world title fight with Tang Kai at ONE 160 in August. As the defending featherweight world champion and with an impressive unblemished record in the ONE circle, fans can certainly understand Le feeling the pressure of the moment.

Speaking to the media ahead of his highly anticipated main event, Le said that he does not let those big moments overwhelm him. Instead, he uses them as motivators, giving him the feeling of being “superhuman.”:

“Those things don't weigh on me in the back of my mind. They make me more powerful, they make me superhuman. It's awesome to bring that in the ring with me, to bring that to the circle. August 26th, time to close this one out.”

Someone’s ‘O’ has to go when Thanh Le and Tang Kai square off at ONE 160. Who do you think walks away with a clean record and ONE gold wrapped around their waist?

Check out Than Le's ultimate striking highlights below: