Rodtang Jitmuangnon returned from injury at ONE 167: Tawanchai vs. Nattawut II. In his first match back for ONE Championship, the Thai star squared off in a catchweight kickboxing affair against Denis Puric. After nine minutes, “The Iron Man” got his hand raised in victory.
But it was not all sunshine and smiles for the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion. After missing weight, he was the subject of much ridicule online. Those messages were felt by the talented Thai star, who wore his emotions on his sleeve after the show.
Rodtang: “Takeru, let’s go” after ONE 167 Win
“I feel relieved right now. On the day that I missed weight, I felt bad for myself, and there was heavy drama and harsh comments online. I couldn’t even pick up my phone to check my phone again. But the comments went too far. They were aimed at the people that I love and the people around me,” Rodtang expressed to ONE.
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“The Iron Man” thanked the fans who continued to cheer him on in his post-match interview. While he understands the professionalism of hitting the mark, returning from injury was his primary concern. Still, the social media barbs cut deep.
“About social media, a lot of people talked about how I didn’t train or anything like that. When I’m training, I’m focused on that. I don’t think it’s necessary for me to show everyone what I’m training each day or what I’m eating each day. It’s really irrelevant,” the flyweight king said.
Rodtang is already looking forward. In his sights is the kickboxing match that has captivated the imagination of fans around the world: Rodtang vs. Takeru Segawa. Healthy and back in form, Rodtang made it known that the Japanese star was what he wanted next.
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“Now that I’m back and fighting again, I want to fight Takeru. Takeru, let’s go,” Rodtang expressed.
If ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong has his way, that match will happen later in 2024. Sityodtong discussed the prospects after ONE 167 and said he would talk to both men. While the initial attempt did not go down in Tokyo, Sityodtong expressed Japan could still be the landing spot.
“I want to do Rodtang vs. Takeru. 100 percent. I want to do that fight this year. Maybe in Japan, let’s see. Let’s see. I need to sit down with Rodtang, and I need to sit down and talk with Takeru to see if and when they’re gonna fight. Or actually, when they’re gonna fight. It’s such a huge fight for them, and it will definitely be one of the biggest fights in Japan’s history, so we want to do that ideally in Japan. But again, there’s a lot of moving parts,” Sityodtong stated.
Miss Rodtang vs. Puric? Relive all of the action from ONE 167 at your leisure. ONE 167 is available on-demand on Prime Video.
