ONE Championship is all set for ONE: Kingdom of Heroes which will feature the WBC Super Flyweight World Championship clash between Srisaket Sor Rungvisai of Thailand and Mexican Iran “MagnfiKO” Diaz at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand on Oct. 6.
Both fighters made the contracted weight limit and are ready to rumble this weekend with Rungivisai a slight favorite over the unpredictable Diaz. The Thai champion is confident of retaining his title and believes the fight will not go the distance.
“I feel very strong and I have trained very hard for this. My weight is on point and I am expecting a tremendous showing this Saturday night. I am definitely looking to finish him within the distance. This will not go to a judges’ decision. Every time I step into the ring, my mind is always thinking knockout. This time will be no different,” said Rungvisai following their weigh-in.
Aware that he faces tall odds, Diaz is not about to go down without a fight. Though he holds high regard for Rungvisai, he knows that it is an opportunity to boost his boxing career.
“This is the biggest opportunity of my career, and I have worked extremely hard in camp preparing for it. Srisaket is a great champion, and he is well-loved by his people. But I’m coming in here looking to seize the moment. This is my time to shine. I have the best team in my corner. They have helped get me ready to capture the gold. I feel so strong and ready,” said Diaz.
An interested spectator of the rare boxing match from ONE Championship will be Filipino boxer Jerwin Ancajas. Coming off a less impressive fight against Alejandro Santiago, he had already planned to watch Rungvisai who could potentially be his next opponent.
Ancajas and his team are flying over to Bangkok to formally issue a challenge to Rungvisai, regarded as one of the top fighters in the 115-pound division, Tempo Sports said. It remains to be seen if that far from impressive showing against Santiago will factor in.
However, Ancajas will also get a glimpse of Diaz – another fighter he could face moving forward. With Juan Manuel Marquez backing “MagnifiKO”, a potential upset is not discounted. Should that happen, could the challenge be instead redirected to the Mexican pug?
There is plenty of animosities tied up to the Rungvisai vs. Diaz match, the main event for ONE: Kingdom of Heroes. The challenge could happen after the match. So the question right now is will Rungvisai keep his head in the game and then think of Ancajas later on.
