WATCH: Insane rematch between Tawanchai and Nattawut electrifies Impact Arena crowd
ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion Tawanchai PK Saenchai had another competitive encounter with rival Jo Nattawut in their rematch earlier this month, opening the possibility for a trilogy contest at some point in the future.
The PK Saenchai standout successfully retained his world title at ONE 167 on June 7 at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, defeating 'Smokin' Jo by majority decision. The contest played almost identically to their first encounter last October, where Tawanchai edged out Nattawut by unanimous decision in their kickboxing joust.
At ONE 167, the two went back-and-forth in a torrid pace. The reigning champion inflicted early damage with solid kicks to the challenger's body and arms.
Nattawut would pick up things as the fight progressed, even landing a powerful right hand in the third frame that left Tawanchai's left eye swelling.
Tawanchai, however, maintained control of the contest, allowing him to pull through with the majority-decision win.
ONE Championship recently uploaded the full fight on its YouTube channel for fans to relive the exciting five-rounder.
Check out the video below:
The victory at ONE 167 was Tawanchai's third successful defense of his ONE featherweight Muay Thai world title.
Chatri Sityodtong open to trilogy fight between Tawanchai and Nattawut
After another highly engaging encounter that went down to the wire, ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong said a trilogy fight between Tawanchai PK Saenchai and Jo Nattawut is highly possible and could even take place in one of the promotion's shows in the United States later this year.
The ONE executive shared it during the post-event press conference for ONE 167, where another highly competitive showdown went down between the Thai rivals.
Sityodtoing said:
"I thought Jo Nattawut won. It was a very close fight, very close. I thought Jo did enough to win. For me, it would have gone to damage, and Tawanchai had more damage on him than Jo did. But, I want to do a rematch in Atlanta. That's the home of where Nattawut is. That would be amazing."
ONE Championship is set to hold an event at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia on Nov. 8. It will be the promotion's second live on-ground event in the U.S. this year, and will follow ONE 168: Denver, which takes place at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado on Sept. 6.