Rodtang Jitmuangnon insisted he is no longer thinking about going up to bantamweight in ONE Championship after a faux “face-off” with Nabil Anane in Japan.
“The Iron Man” stood next to the towering Thai-Algerian on stage at last Friday’s ONE 172 press conference and enjoyed a mock staredown with the interim bantamweight Muay Thai champion.
The optics sparked laughter on social media, but Rodtang admitted he knows he will be better off sticking around at flyweight.
“Oh no – no, no. I will stay here now,” Rodtang told the Bangkok Post with a laugh backstage, after hosting a Muay Thai Masterclass seminar with Superlek at the World Muay Thai Festival in Bangkok on Wednesday.
ONE bantamweight Muay Thai champ Superlek was also in Japan, for a real face-off with Anane, with whom he will unify the titles on March 23.
As for picking a winner, Rodtang is firmly on the fence.
“It’s 50-50 – Nabil, Suerplek, I’m not sure,” he added. ‘Nabil has big weight. Superlek’s IQ is very good. But they have the same power, low kick, body shot – everything is 50-50, so yeah, no [prediction].”
Rodtang will of course be headlining the event at Saitama Super Arena against Takeru Segawa in a flyweight kickboxing super fight.
Win or lose, he will have business to attend to – whether it’s reclaiming the vacant Muay Thai title he lost on the scale, or going after Superlek’s flyweight kickboxing belt should he defeat Takeru.
“Yes, I want to get my belt back, but I have not thought about it yet, one by one. It’s up to Chatri [Sityodtong, ONE chairman and CEO],” Rodtang said.
“Yeah, I would like to fight Superlek for his kickboxing belt, but I don’t know what the boss wants.”
Rodtang’s friendly rivalry with Superlek was as evident as ever on Wednesday, with the pair engaging in some banter while holding rival seminars across the hall from each other at Saim Paragon.
“Of course my seminar was better,” Rodtang quipped. “He might have won against me, but I also badly injured him as well.”
Rodtang could be seen gleefully demonstrating to his students the elbow technique that cut Superlek’s forehead wide open in their September 2023 classic, which “The Kicking Machine” won by decision.
“Muay Thai is very unique to individual people,” he added. “So if the people come to learn with me, they will get the style of Rodtang too.
“It’s great to be here. I’m really happy to pass on the knowledge of Muay Thai to others and I hope that Muay Thai will be supported by everyone.”
Rodtang was later on stage in the main exhibition hall for the opening night of the Festival, which runs until Saturday and features professional Muay Thai, influencer fights and even some pop concerts.
“I want to change the mindset of the way people view Muay Thai. It’s not just fighting and violence. but it’s actually a soft power,” he said.
“We have a lot of things because we have got the support from authorities as well. There are many activities and many aspects of Muay Thai so we hope the fans who are not really interested can come and learn about Muay Thai, and it can spark their dreams and passion.”
“The Iron Man” stood next to the towering Thai-Algerian on stage at last Friday’s ONE 172 press conference and enjoyed a mock staredown with the interim bantamweight Muay Thai champion.
The optics sparked laughter on social media, but Rodtang admitted he knows he will be better off sticking around at flyweight.
“Oh no – no, no. I will stay here now,” Rodtang told the Bangkok Post with a laugh backstage, after hosting a Muay Thai Masterclass seminar with Superlek at the World Muay Thai Festival in Bangkok on Wednesday.
ONE bantamweight Muay Thai champ Superlek was also in Japan, for a real face-off with Anane, with whom he will unify the titles on March 23.
As for picking a winner, Rodtang is firmly on the fence.
“It’s 50-50 – Nabil, Suerplek, I’m not sure,” he added. ‘Nabil has big weight. Superlek’s IQ is very good. But they have the same power, low kick, body shot – everything is 50-50, so yeah, no [prediction].”
Rodtang will of course be headlining the event at Saitama Super Arena against Takeru Segawa in a flyweight kickboxing super fight.
Win or lose, he will have business to attend to – whether it’s reclaiming the vacant Muay Thai title he lost on the scale, or going after Superlek’s flyweight kickboxing belt should he defeat Takeru.
“Yes, I want to get my belt back, but I have not thought about it yet, one by one. It’s up to Chatri [Sityodtong, ONE chairman and CEO],” Rodtang said.
“Yeah, I would like to fight Superlek for his kickboxing belt, but I don’t know what the boss wants.”
Rodtang’s friendly rivalry with Superlek was as evident as ever on Wednesday, with the pair engaging in some banter while holding rival seminars across the hall from each other at Saim Paragon.
“Of course my seminar was better,” Rodtang quipped. “He might have won against me, but I also badly injured him as well.”
Rodtang could be seen gleefully demonstrating to his students the elbow technique that cut Superlek’s forehead wide open in their September 2023 classic, which “The Kicking Machine” won by decision.
“Muay Thai is very unique to individual people,” he added. “So if the people come to learn with me, they will get the style of Rodtang too.
“It’s great to be here. I’m really happy to pass on the knowledge of Muay Thai to others and I hope that Muay Thai will be supported by everyone.”
Rodtang was later on stage in the main exhibition hall for the opening night of the Festival, which runs until Saturday and features professional Muay Thai, influencer fights and even some pop concerts.
“I want to change the mindset of the way people view Muay Thai. It’s not just fighting and violence. but it’s actually a soft power,” he said.
“We have a lot of things because we have got the support from authorities as well. There are many activities and many aspects of Muay Thai so we hope the fans who are not really interested can come and learn about Muay Thai, and it can spark their dreams and passion.”
