“It was bad” – Marat Grigorian on his alarmingly slow start in sixth encounter with Sitthichai at ONE 165

Second-ranked ONE Championship featherweight kickboxing contender Marat Grigorian of Armenia is relieved to have made it out of his sixth and perhaps final fight with Thai striking icon ‘The Killer Kid’ Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong on the victorious end.

Grigorian and Sitthichai locked horns at ONE 165: Superlek vs. Takeru, and put together an epic performance on one of ONE Championship’s biggest pay-per-view events this year. It was a close battle throughout, but Grigorian was able to decipher ‘The Killer Kid’s style in the third and final round.

The result was an epic knockout sequence that brought their rivalry to 4 wins (Sitthichai) vs. 2 (Grigorian.)

However, it wasn’t an easy win for Grigorian. The 32-year-old Hemmers Gym representative admits his slow start made the fight more difficult than it should have been.

Addressing the media at the official ONE 165: Superlek vs. Takeru post-fight press conference backstage, Grigorian pointed out the mistakes he had made early in the fight.

The Armenian superstar said:

“In the first round, I was a bit slow. I was watching too much. I was waiting for the power shot but it wasn’t [just finding the target], it was bad.”

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Marat Grigorian looks back on epic rivalry with Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong that has spanned nearly a decade

Marat Grigorian and Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong have history, and their latest battle could be the final chapter. The two first met at Glory 28: Paris in March of 2016, and now they have fought a total of six times.

Grigorian told veteran ONE Championship broadcast analyst Mitch ‘The Dragon’ Chilson in the ring following their fight:

“We had already [fought] eight years at the top, eight years of fighting each other, and we are one of the best kickboxers in the world. I’m happy to win this again on KO on his body. I’m so happy, and in Japan!”

ONE 165: Superlek vs. Takeru was held at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan on Sunday, January 28th, and was broadcast live globally on pay-per-view via watch.onefc.com.