ONE Championship returns to Lumpinee Stadium for ONE Friday Fights 2 on Friday, January 27. At the top of the card is a rematch of the 2020 ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai Tournament semifinals between Kulabdam Sor. Jor. Piek Uthai and Sangmanee PK.Saenchai. The bantamweight showdown will help bring the winner closer to the title picture in 2023.
Ahead of the main event action, both men spoke to ONE about their previous encounter and the impending matchup inside Lumpinee Stadium. The two twentysomethings are hoping for a big performance to grab headlines and continue their successes on the global stage. However, there is much more to the rematch for both men.
“I haven’t fought at Lumpinee Stadium for three or four years. I’m glad to be able to fight here again because it feels like I’m back home where I made a reputation in Muay Thai. Lumpinee is the nation’s legendary stadium. Not every fighter would be eligible to fight here. You need to have a fan base and be well-known as the best fighter, so you are chosen to be here. And most importantly, from my previous fights at Lumpinee, I always did a good job. No matter if I won or lost, I felt like I could perform well here at Lumpinee,” said Kulabdam.
Although Kulabdam got the first-round knockout in the first meeting, his motivations were not simply to win. Heading into their first match, Kulabdam felt he was the underdog and used that as his motive to prove doubters wrong. For the rematch, he wants to cement his place ahead of his compatriot with another exciting finish.
“Before my first fight at ONE, most people thought that I couldn’t fight with Sangmanee. I kept those criticisms to myself and concentrated on my training. I was determined to beat him because I was underestimated a lot. And for this upcoming fight on Friday, January 27, I am super ready to face Sangmanee again. Let’s see who will perform better in the Circle,” said Kulabdam.
The knockout loss has been eating away at his opponent, Sangmanee. The 25-year-old is coming off a split decision nod to Zhang Chenglong, but it is his prior loss that is truly making him eager for the bell to ring. He has examined every second of the first meeting to pinpoint his errors and fix those holes.
“For me, this is a good opportunity to get revenge. That loss has been on my mind for a long time. I watched that fight when I was KOed over and over to find out what mistakes I made. I take everything that happened in that fight as a big lesson, and I’ve tried to fix it. In this upcoming fight, I am confident that I am good enough to go against Kulabdam, for sure,” said Sangmanee.
He is hoping that confidence is the beginning of a winning streak on the global stage. Sangmanee will make it back-to-back wins in ONE with a victory on Friday, bringing him one step closer to breaking through to the top five of the division. The loaded bantamweight Muay Thai division is ripe for a new challenger to make his run in 2023.
Sangmanee has not only been watching film to fix his own deficiencies as he makes his climb up the ladder, the PK.Saenchai representative has also kept a close eye on his opponent. Sangmanee has pointed out that his 24-year-old rival has been developing an overall attack with his kicks. The rematch is sure to bring out the best in both men and deliver an impactful main event.
“Many of my weaknesses in the game have been fixed. I’ve been training more on my speed and self-defense, as well as my other weapons. My trainer has also watched that clip to see how to adjust the game plan, and we got a plan for better defense and counterattacks. I admit that Kulabdam has made a lot of improvements in his skills as well. His punch is absolutely dangerous, but now, I see that he has added leg kicks and other weapons that are just as scary. So, I won’t be careless,” said Sangmanee.
The first six bouts of ONE Friday Fights 2 will air live on FanDuel TV at 7:30 a.m. EST/4:30 a.m. PST. The event will also air live and free via watch.onefc.com, ONE’s YouTube channel, and ONE’s Facebook page.
The final five matches air live and free on watch.onefc.com, ONE’s YouTube channel, and ONE’s Facebook page at 9:30 a.m. EST/6:30 a.m. PST.
