“Coming to shock the world” - British slugger Jacob Smith dedicates world title challenge against Rodtang to his family back home
Jacob Smith is ready to raise 26 pounds of gold above his head.The British slugger will compete in the biggest fight of his career when he challenges Rodtang Jitmuangnon for the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title in the co-main event of the stacked ONE 169 card on Nov. 8 at the historic Lumpinee Stadium.
Smack in the middle fight week, Smith has arrived in Bangkok with the sole mission of taking the flyweight Muay Thai throne from Rodtang. Jacob Smith vowed on Instagram that he'll dedicate his world title challenge to his family back home in England, and that he would return with the gold belt over his shoulder.
He wrote:
""Ready to fight with all I have to bring home what my family deserves. Coming to shock the world 👑 #ONE169"
Smith has been hard at work preparing for his shot at immortality this Friday, and it seems he'll stop at nothing to finally beat Rodtang. Apart from taking the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title, Smith has one more reason to get his hand raised at ONE 169.
Rodtang welcomed Smith to ONE Championship when he made his promotional debut at ONE 157 in May 2022. Unfortunately for the Englishman, 'The Iron Man' dominated him en-route to a decision win.
Smith has since made it his mission to avenge that defeat and deal Rodtang his first world title loss in ONE Championship. Rodtang, though, remains to be a different beast in his world title matches in the promotion. He has gone 6-0 whenever the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world championship has been on the line.
The entire ONE 169 card is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Jacob Smith says he was proud of the fight he brought against Rodtang in ONE Championship debut
Although he lost in his promotional debut, Jacob Smith admitted that he was proud to have withstood the punishment Rodtang Jitmuangnon unleashed against him in their first fight.
Smith faced off against Rodtang in the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Grand Prix quarterfinals but lost via unanimous decision to the Thai megastar. Smith said in an interview with the South China Morning Post that he wasn't disheartened by the loss, and was instead glad of how he stood with Rodtang inside the Circle.
He said:
"The one thing I can hold my head up high about the first fight is that I done exactly what I said I was going to do. I was going to stand in front of him, which I did - like an idiot, by the way. And I didn't move my feet once, I didn't move my head once."
Watch Smith's entire interview below: