Long before the bright lights of ONE Championship found them, Johan Ghazali and Olivia Bahsous were just kids grinding through camps together. Now it's Bahsous's moment to shine, facing Malia Weaver in an atomweight Muay Thai clash at The Inner Circle 35 on Friday, 16 October, inside Bangkok's Lumpinee Stadium.
Two highlight-reel finishes have already put Bahsous firmly on the fast track toward the promotion's coveted US$100,000 main roster contract, the very same milestone Ghazali unlocked after his own perfect 4-0 breakout stretch on the weekly series years earlier.
Their story began roughly five years ago, when a Canadian training group that included Bahsous's family travelled to Rentap, Malaysia, to train alongside Ghazali's camp for two weeks ahead of the IFMA Youth World Championship. Most of the group eventually left, but the Bahsous family returned to train with them again, forging a bond that has outlasted both fame and time zones.
“The Canadian team decided to come to Rentap and they trained with us for two weeks. After it was done, some of them left. But then, Olivia and her entire family came back to train with us again,” he said.
“Olivia was so small. I was, too. So yeah, we go way back before ONE Championship, before fame and all that. They’re like my day ones. We went through hell together, basically.”
That relentlessness has since carried Bahsous to three IFMA Junior World titles and, at just 13 years old, the distinction of being the youngest female athlete ever to compete at Lumpinee Stadium, a résumé that already reads like a seasoned veteran's.
He remembers seeing that hunger even when Bahsous was much younger, showing up to train through tears on days when other 11-year-old girls simply didn't want to.
“She’s extremely dedicated. She wants it. Even when we were much younger, I’d say I saw it in her. Even though she cried some times, she still showed up when other 11-year-old girls didn’t really want it,” he said
“You can see that she’s dedicated and she actually wants to be a good fighter. That’s what really stood out about her. And I think the world now can see that Olivia actually wants to be a leading fighter.”
Ghazali credits her father's hands-on guidance, spanning nutrition to strength and conditioning, as a major driving force behind her rapid rise so far.
His mentorship has extended well past the ring, too, coaching her through the pressures of speaking to media and quietly sending her interviews and podcasts from veteran fighters to study over time.
“She’s very, very motivated. One thing I like about Olivia is that everything is in place for her. You know, she has all the best guidance. Her dad is really dedicated to it. He helps her with everything from nutrition to strength and conditioning,” he said.
“I feel like she’s going to make it to the top for sure. Her support system, particularly her dad, has been top. So yeah, I see her going very far like me. It would be sweet to conquer a division and see her do the same in ONE too.”
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