“That is my fuel” - Jackie Buntan says disparity in experience one of her motivations against Anissa Meksen at ONE 169
Jackie Buntan is facing arguably the biggest test of her career when she squares off against Anissa Meksen, but she's not letting the massive gap in their experience dissuade her from bringing the fight in their Bangkok showdown.
The Filipino-American star will face Meksen for the inaugural ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world title at the stacked ONE 169 card on Nov. 8, US primetime, at the historic Lumpinee Stadium.
In an interview with ONE Championship, Buntan acknowledged that Meksen holds a massive advantage in terms of experience heading into their world title duel. Meksen is often considered one of the greatest fighters of all time, with multiple world titles across several organizations backing up her argument.
Jackie Buntan, however, used that gap as fuel ahead of the biggest fight of her career.
She said:
"She has way more experience. She's been in kickboxing. So that is my fuel, being able to fight somebody on paper better than me."
Meksen held gold under WBC Muay Thai, Enfusion, Glory, ISKA, and several other organizations before arriving at ONE Championship in 2021.
She has since carved a 3-1 record in the promotion, with her lone loss coming against Thai phenom Phetjeeja for the ONE interim atomweight kickboxing world title.
Jackie Buntan, meanwhile, has yet to reach the notoriety that Meksen achieved. Nevertheless, she has proven herself on the world's biggest stage of martial arts. Buntan is 6-1 in the promotion and rides a three-fight winning streak ahead of ONE 169.
After losing her chance at the inaugural ONE women's strawweight Muay Thai world title against Smilla Sundell, Buntan racked up dominant wins over Amber Kitchen, Diandra Martin, and Martine Michieletto.
Buntan and Meksen's world title duel, and the entire ONE 169 card, are available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Jackie Buntan plans to show her evolution against Anissa Meksen in Bangkok
Jackie Buntan has fought exclusively under Muay Thai in her entire ONE Championship tenure, but she believes she's more than capable of facing one of the world's best under kickboxing rules.
In an interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Buntan said she plans to show a new side to her offense when she takes on Anissa Meksen for the inaugural ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world title.
"What I’m able to do, I’m able to process that quickly and change it in the middle of the fight. But it’s kinda like my style, plus a different cadence, a different look that all the fans will see come fight night."