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At ONE Fight Night 8 on March 24, ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion Superlek Kiatmoo9 defended his title for the very first time.
At the event, which went down live from the Singapore Indoor Stadium and was broadcast via Prime Video, ‘The Kicking Machine’ was originally scheduled to face with Rodtang Jitmaungnon in a striking superfight.
After it was announced that Rodtang was forced to pull out of the fight due to an injury, Aussie striker Danial Williams stepped into the main event to face the champion on late notice.
Giving the champ the chance to still compete on the card and put on a show for the fans, Superlek was grateful to Williams for stepping up when ONE Championship needed him most.
Whilst ‘Mini T’ may have been outmatched in the contest, without the courage that he displayed, the main event wouldn’t have happened in the first place.
In his post-event interview following his third-round KO of Danial Williams, the champ paid respect to his opponent:
“I would like to thank him for accepting this fight last minute, I would like to say that he's a very strong fighter. I respect his heart. I respect his courage. I have nothing to say except thank you very much.”
Superlek is keen to reschedule his fight with Rodtang Jitmuangnon
The originally scheduled main event of ONE Fight Night 8 was a matchup that fans have been dreaming of for a long-time, and Superlek Kiatmoo9 shared their excitement.
On March 24, the flyweight kickboxing world champion was set to defend his title against flyweight Muay Thai king Rodtang Jitmuangon in a battle of two of the promotion’s most ruthless strikers.
When the fight was called off due to Rodtang suffering an injury in training, it wasn’t just the fans who were left disappointed. Whilst he stayed on the card by facing Danial Williams, ‘The Kicking Machine’ is keen to face ‘The Iron Man’ sometime in the near future regardless of the ruleset.
In an interview with the South China Morning Post, Superlek said:
“I think this fight is pretty much inevitable because we’re both in the same weight division. I’m the champion of kickboxing, Rodtang is the champion of Muay Thai so I think in the near future we’ll have to face each other again.”
He had also made it clear that he is looking to compete against Rodtang in a Muay Thai match. After ‘The Iron Man’ was set to have the opportunity to become a two-sport world champion, ‘The Kicking Machine’ wants the favor to be returned:
“If I could choose, I would fight him in Muay Thai first. But it’s fine for me. I am just focusing on defending my kickboxing gold. Muay Thai is another story for another time,” Superlek told ONE in an interview.
