ONE 169 results: Rodtang Jitmuangnon vs Jacob Smith
The highly anticipated rematch between Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Jacob Smith finally took place on Friday evening at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, in the co-main event of the ONE 169 card.
Despite losing the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title on the scales after missing weight, Rodtang wants to reassert his mastery over his British rival. On the other hand, Smith looks to realize his dream of becoming a world champion, as he is the only eligible fighter to win the 26-pound golden belt.
See the blow-by-blow action of this exciting flyweight Muay Thai clash between the two striking sensations.
Round 1: A solid exchange of strong leg kicks opened the match. Smith unleashed a solid body kick, but Rodtang answered with a four-piece combination to back the British contender up to his range.
Rodtang continued to blitz Smith with his boxing, but Smith answered with kicks and punches of his own. Rodtang attempted a spinning wheel kick, but Smith dodged it. The Thai superstar flexed his power and forced Smith to fight on his back foot in the remainder of the opening round.
Round 2: Rodtang opened the second frame with a brutal combination, but Smith ate it well. The front kicks continued to be one of Rodtang's primary weapons in the match to set up his attack.
One of the best moments of the round was when Rodtang clipped Smith with a quick combination and then danced in front of him to display his showmanship. The round ended with Smith's strong leg kick, which landed just before the bell rang.
Round 3: Rodtang went into another gear when the third salvo began when he blitzed him with another combination, especially when he connected his signature elbow strike.
Smith tried to retaliate with kicks in the last minute of the round, but Rodtang landed a picture-perfect elbow strike that busted a massive cut on the British's face. This also caused a technical timeout because of how bad the blood was running fast down on the British contender's right eye.
Round 4: Rodtang continued to stalk Smith in the fourth round and is looking for a finish. Smith tried to initiate several more clinch battles, but Rodtang broke them immediately to send the match back to the center of the ring.
Another moment of showmanship was displayed by Rodtang, who laughed off the elbow strikes that Smith landed and even banged his head against Smith's elbow to prove that they did not hurt him.
Round 5: Rodtang turned up the heat in the final round by walking down Smith with several elbow strikes that inflicted more damage on his face. Aside from attacking the head of Smith, Rodtang also targeted the body of Smith with atomic punches.
Smith tried to pressure Rodtang in the last minute of the fifth round by firing multiple punches and elbows, but the Thai superstar just shrugged it off and cruised into another masterful and entertaining performance.
ONE 169 - Rodtang Jitmuangnon vs. Jacob Smith official result
Former ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon has made it 2-0 against number three-ranked divisional contender Jacob Smith with a unanimous decision victory over him in their championship clash at ONE 169.
Although he wasn't eligible to win the 26-pound golden belt due to missing weight on the scales, the Jitmuangnon Gym representative still performed fantastically during the match.
His best moment was when he opened up a cut on Smith's right eye in the third round of the match with his patented elbow strikes. From that and from there, he spammed him with more elbows and coasted into the decision triumph.
Rodtang Jitmuangnon defeated Jacob Sith via unanimous decision in their ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title fight.