Sam-A says goal was to make Zhang Peimian "nervous" in victorious outing at ONE 169

Sam-A Gaiyanghadao dished out a backfoot striking masterclass to see off 'Fighting Rooster' Zhang Peimian at ONE 169.

The former two-division, two-sport ONE world champion faced an uphill task from the very start as the Chinese megastar came in guns blazing looking to close the distance and control the tempo of their strawweight kickboxing fight inside the Lumpinee Stadium.

But cometh the hour, cometh the man. Despite being forced to work off the backfoot, Sam-A was at his technical best to throw jabs, kicks, and knees over the top to frustrate 'Fighting Rooster' at every attempt he threw down inside the pocket.

Breaking down his route to victory in an interview with ONE Championship in Bangkok, Thailand, the 41-year-old Evolve MMA fighter said:

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"In the second round, I switched to focusing more on neck kicks to make him nervous. Then in the middle of the round, I got a left knee strike and he appeared to be affected by it. Then I went in for another set of attacks."

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Sam-A on the hunt to reclaim his ONE world title

With the win inside the 'Mecca of Muay Thai' last Friday, The 'Art of Eight Limbs' specialist upgraded his resume to 375-49.

As for what's next, Sam-A hopes the win has done him justice in his pursuit for a trilogy fight against reigning ONE strawweight kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai.

During the in-ring interview with Mitch Chilson, the striking veteran shared:

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"What I want next is I want to get back on my throne. I want to get back there again to prove myself, and I want to do this for myself."

Combat sports fans in the United States and Canada who missed ONE 169 can rewatch the entire card on Amazon Prime Video.

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