“His weapons started to slow down” - Veteran Sam-A says he used Zhang Peimian’s youth against him at ONE 169
Sam-A was "100 percent sure" he defeated Zhang Peimian after the third round ended.
At ONE 169, 41-year-old Sam-A continued to deny father time in a kickboxing bout against Peimian. The Thai veteran battled his way to a unanimous decision win, extending his promotional record in the sport to 2-0.
Following his latest win, Sam-A did an interview with ONE Championship Thailand. He had this to say about Peimian's slowing down in round three, giving him added confidence that his hand would be raised:
“The last round was the same. His weapons started to slow down. When the game ended, I was 100 percent sure that I won because I thought I did better overall in all three rounds.”
Sam-A's impressive win wasn't the only major takeaway from ONE 169. In the main event, 'Reug Reug' Oumar Kane pulled off an upset win against Anatoly Malykhin for the heavyweight MMA world title.
The November 8 event also featured Jackie Buntan becoming the women's strawweight kickboxing world title, Adriano Moraes submitting Danny Kingad, Rodtang dominating Jacob Smith in a rematch, Kade Ruotolo's second professional MMA win, and more.
The full replay of ONE 169: Malykhin vs Reug Reug, including Sam-A's kickboxing war with Peimian, is available on demand for Amazon Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Sam-A continues to silence doubters with impressive performances
Striking sports are considered a young man's game, especially Muay Thai and kickboxing. Meanwhile, Sam-A has redefined that logic, as he's coming off back-to-back wins against Akram Hamidi (first-round knockout in Muay Thai) and Zhang Peimian (unanimous decision in kickboxing).
The 41-year-old's latest success has raised questions about how far he can go in either sport. When it comes to kickboxing, he has a strong argument for deserving a title shot against two-sport strawweight world champion Prajanchai.
Since signing with ONE, Sam-A has fought Prajanchai twice, both in Muay Thai. The reigning strawweight king emerged victorious in those fights, with the latter being a second-round knockout in June 2023. It'll be intriguing to see if the promotion gives him an opportunity to avenge the defeats in kickboxing.
Watch the second fight between Prajanchai and Sam-A below: