Rodtang Jitmuangnon was prepared for a war with Takeru Segawa in their flyweight kickboxing super-fight at ONE 172. Instead, he needed only 80 seconds to deliver a knockout blow to his Japanese rival.
In the wake of the stunning result at Japan’s Super Saitama Arena on March 23, “The Iron Man” had time to reflect on his standout performance.
“I have studied all the weaknesses, and all the openings of Takeru, and that left hook is one of the moves that I trained. I feel like I did my part, but I didn't expect that finish that quickly,” Rodtang said at the post-event press conference.
Although Rodtang was hoping for a memorable battle after years of waiting, he is more than satisfied with the result of delivering his knockout power against an all-time great.
“He's one of the best in the world, and I feel like this fight should have lasted longer,” Rodtang said.
“I wanted to take the first two rounds to box it up with Takeru, to see who's gonna be the one left standing. But it's incredible. I didn't even realize that my hands had that much power to knock him out. Even I'm surprised.”
The main event victory meant even more to “The Iron Man” after a tumultuous 2024 that saw him stripped of the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Title.
But after his hard work paid off in a memorable way, Rodtang feels revitalized to make 2025 his best year yet.
“It feels like I just woke up from a bad dream. In the two past fights, I've been missing my weight, and I lost something that I cherish, that I love the most, my Muay Thai belt,” Rodtang said.
“I felt like this was a bad dream, but now the answer clearly shows that I have found success again. I remind myself every day during training on how successful I was and why I became famous in the first place, and now I'm really dedicated.”
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