Allycia Hellen Rodrigues admits having to deal with ring rust mid-Janet Todd fight

Allycia Hellen Rodrigues may have been out of action for more than two years, but you certainly couldn’t tell on Friday night when she made her long-awaited return to the circle.

Rodrigues made her triumphant return to ONE Championship after walking away from the promotion shortly after her ONE world title win over fan favorite Stamp Fairtex in 2019. Following the pregnancy and birth of her son, Rodrigues returned to once again establish herself as the queen of atomweight Muay Thai.

Hoping to stand in her way was Janet Todd, an American Muay Thai fighter who has held down the division in Rodrigues’ absence. However, it was Rodrigues who would emerge victorious, scoring a unanimous decision victory to retain the ONE atomweight Muay Thai world championship.

Following the victory, Rodrigues admitted that she struggled with her timing in the early going:

“I was over two years out of fighting, so my timing was slightly off,” Rodrigues said in a ONE Fight Night 8 post-fight interview. “And we planned to start slow, but after the third round, we will know which direction to take.”

With her victory over Janet Todd in Muay Thai action, Allycia Hellen Rodrigues has her eye on challenging ‘JT’ for the ONE atomweight kickboxing crown that she still retains.

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Allycia Hellen Rodrigues did a lot of boxing in preparation for Janet Todd

Before returning to the circle for a showdown with Janet Todd at ONE Fight Night 8, Allycia Hellen Rodrigues focused on her boxing skills. That decision clearly paid off as Rodrigues managed to stay one step ahead of ‘JT’ throughout their 15-minute world-title tilt on Friday night.

“It's similar [with Stamp], but I think I work more with my hands this time because I was training a lot of boxing styles. I promise next time, I will start the fight stronger. I was out for a long time but now I [am back]. I am going to be a better fighter.”

While it was just her second win under the ONE Championship banner, her victory over Todd was the 32nd of her career. Considering Rodrigues is just 24 years old and is coming off a two-and-a-half-year layoff, that is an especially impressive feat for the Brazilian striker.

If things go her way, Rodrigues will have the opportunity to add another ONE world title to her collection when she returns to the circle later this year.