ONE Championship strawweight Muay Thai fighter 'Wondergirl' Jaroonsak will make her much-anticipated MMA debut at ONE 157 on May 20. The lively and lethal Thai will face India's Zeba Bano in a three-round MMA fight.
It's quite the challenge for the debuting 'Wondergirl'. Bano, who will also be making her promotional debut, has four KO/TKO's and one submission on her 6-0 record while 'Wondergirl' stands at 3-1 in amateur MMA.
Though there might be a glaring disparity in their MMA records, the great equalizer is Jaroonsak's significant achievement in Muay Thai. The former Fairtex fighter has been a national champion in the past.
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Speaking to South China Morning Post, 'Wondergirl' expressed her thoughts on her ONE 157 opponent. Despite being known as one of the best Muay Thai fighters on ONE Championship's roster, 'Wondergirl' wants to show that her grappling is not to be taken lightly as well:
"Her [Bano] background is striking as well and she's from Wushu, which has some takedowns as well. Yeah, I think I can handle her with my Muay Thai and my grappling. Who knows, maybe I'll win by submission [laughs]."
Though she's coming into ONE 157 as the Muay Thai sensation, 'Wondergirl' has quite the background in grappling. She's won numerous medals in jiu-jitsu in Thailand in both Gi and No Gi categories. A submission is definitely not an impossibility against the strike-centered Bano.
Watch the full interview below:
'Wondergirl' is not worried about Bano's experience in MMA ahead of ONE Championship 157
In the same interview, it was pointed out that Bano has a significant advantage when it comes to experience in MMA. When asked if this was a problem for her, the ONE Championship Muay Thai phenom confidently answered:
"Yeah, I fought in Muay Thai in over 60 fights, and she's [Bano] a striker, I don't think it will be a problem. It's kind of like, different between Muay Thai and MMA, of course, but I don't think she has been active lately. I think same as me, we havent [fought] in ONE [MMA] yet. I don't think there would be any problem."
'Wondergirl' has a point. Bano isn't known to be a grappler and is known to use Wushu in her MMA fights. The 23-year-old will be making her debut on the world stage at ONE. Jitters might come into play as well.
Since both are undeniably dangerous on their feet, the difference might be in the grappling department. Something that 'Wondergirl', interestingly, might have an advantage in.