WATCH: Rodtang Jitmuangnon turns on the kill switch in furious world title defense against Joseph Lasiri
Thai superstar Rodtang Jitmuangnon has been on an impressive roll as ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion, undefeated in five title defenses since becoming divisional king in 2019. Among those results was his win over Italian-Moroccan standout and former strawweight world champion Joseph Lasiri.
'The Iron Man' took on 'The Hurricane' in a highly heated all-champion title clash at ONE Prime Video 4 in November 2022 in Singapore, where the Jitmuangnon Gym standout dominated his challenger in their five-rounder. Rodtang pummeled Lasiri with ferocious body shots and shovel hooks throughout, punctuated by two knockdowns in the last two rounds.
ONE Championship relived the fight between the two world-class Muay Thai fighters in a YouTube post on Nov. 1.
Check out the video below:
The YouTube post was in connection with Rodtang's scheduled defense of the flyweight Muay Thai gold on Nov. 8 at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. 'Reug Reug'. He will take on British challenger Jacob Smith in a rematch of their first encounter two years ago.
ONE 169 will go down at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, and air live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Rodtang not letting guard down against Jacob Smith in rematch
Rodtang Jitmuangnon dominated Jacob Smith in their first encounter two years ago but is not letting his guard down when they reengage on Nov. 8 at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug in Thailand.
The Thai superstar shared this in an interview with Sportskeeda MMA, highlighting that while he won convincingly over the Englishman the first time around, the latter still proved his toughness, something the reigning ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion expects to continue to be in effect in their redo.
He said:
"He was a tough guy, a very strong fighter. I cut him him with my elbow three times, and he was still standing. It was surprising for me to see a man losing that much blood and still had the strength to keep the game going."
The two top Muay Thai fighters met in May 2022 in a ONE flyweight Muay Thai world grand prix quarterfinal match, which 'The Iron Man' won by unanimous decision.
ONE 169 will see Rodtang defend the flyweight gold for the sixth time since becoming world champion in 2019.