Jacob Smith says chance to become a two-sport king would be special even though kickboxing isn't his cup of tea
British striker Jacob Smith knows that it'll be a remarkable achievement for him to unlock two-sport glory inside the ONE circle. However, the Liverpool native admits crossing into the kickboxing realm hasn't quite piqued his interest yet.
The No.3-ranked contender locks horns with Rodtang Jitmuangnon for his ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title at ONE 169 on Nov. 8 inside the Lumpinee Stadium.
Though a victory would undeniably move him one step closer to securing a second gold in a separate discipline, the Bad Company and Thaifist product concedes he won't jump the gun just for the sake of becoming a two-sport king.
Speaking to Sportskeeda MMA in an exclusive interview, Jacob Smith shared:
"I mean, it would be nice to be a two-sport world champion, but like I said, kickboxing isn't my thing."
Jacob Smith fully locked in to pull one back vs. Rodtang at ONE 169
Regardless of what the future holds, the 32-year-old has his radar fully locked on acing his rematch against Rodtang inside the 'Mecca of Muay Thai' next month.
Smith debuted on the global stage against 'The Iron Man' in a quarterfinal fixture of the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix Championship in May 2022. Despite putting on a courageous performance, the Thai striker's striking arsenal was levels above his.
With time to hone his power in the four-ounce gloves, as seen in his crushing first-round knockout of Walter Goncalves, Smith is game to pull off a stunning upset of Rodtang and lay his hands on the most coveted prize in Muay Thai today — the promotion's 26 pounds of gold.
In the same interview, Jacob Smith talked about what he'll do differently at ONE 169, while admitting that he almost had Rodtang's number in their first duel:
"I think he did feel my power and I got into some positions to make sure he feels my power. But I'll be able to do it better this time. I'm better equipped. I'm a lot better."
North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can catch the entire ONE 169 card live in U.S. primetime for free.