Tonight, 22 December, at 8:30 p.m., ONE Friday on Prime Video 46 kicks off at Lumpinee Stadium. At that point, Tawanchai will defend his Featherweight Muay Thai World Title against former Featherweight Kickboxing World Champion Superbon. It will also be the pinnacle of the clash between two of the new generation of Muay Thai champions.
As time passed, the older generation of Muay Thai greats from the Boqiu era were nearing the twilight of their careers, and Sitthichai's form declined, and while he was still on the top line in ONE Championship, back-to-back losses knocked him out of the Championship Circle. Among the current featherweight Muay Thai fighters, Tawanchai and Sitthichai can be described as pyramid-like existences.
Since 2022, Tawanchai has won six straight fights and four (T)knockouts, a rare finishing rate among Thai players.
Among them, his one-round KO of Saemapetch, 49-second TKO of Jamal Yusupov, and three-round sweep of David Kiria's arm are particularly exciting.
Muay Thai has been known for its ferocity since the beginning, but with the improvement of the level of fighters in various countries and the influence of Thailand's local "gambling boxing" tradition, the knockout rate of Muay Thai fighters has dropped significantly.
The traditional five-round Muay Thai contest has become slower-paced, leaving many non-Thai fans questioning the tightness and spectacle of Muay Thai bouts.
But ONE Championship's changes to Muay Thai rules have changed the perception of Muay Thai in a big way, especially the idea of encouraging offense and finishing and the use of 4-ounce gloves that make ONE Muay Thai even more exciting.
At the same time, the competition was held in the holy land of Muay Thai, Lumpinee, which gave fans a sense of the intersection of tradition and modernity, and gave life to the ancient martial arts of Muay Thai.
Tawanchai and Superbon are the next generation of Muay Thai superstars to reach new heights in ONE Championship.
Tawanchai held the featherweight Muay Thai Champion belt firmly in his hands with a brilliant performance, while Superbon successfully reached the top of the featherweight kickboxing division in the featherweight kickboxing division, including George Petrosyan, Marat, Sitthichai and many other world-class powerhouses, and became the strongest in the featherweight kickboxing division for a while.
But then, Superbon was knocked out by Featherweight Kickboxing Grand Prix Champion Allazov, and a rematch between the two seemed inevitable.
But until then, Superbon is still looking to make a shot at the Muay Thai gold and fulfill his promise of becoming a double kickboxing/Muay Thai champion.
Both Tawanchai and Superbon are the strongest featherweights in Thailand and Muay Thai, both in terms of past accolades and current competitive form, so this Muay Thai showdown has attracted the attention of many fans at home and abroad. And this is truly a big fight that all striking arts fans can't miss.
Tonight at 8:30, Superbon vs Tawanchai, see you at the top! Martial arts fans will also be following the report, so stay tuned.