Anissa Meksen prefers to keep things distant with teammate Allycia Hellen Rodrigues: “It’s better this way”

Anissa Meksen prefers to keep her distance from teammate Allycia Hellen Rodrigues.

This Friday night, November 8, Meksen will square off with Boxing Works star Jackie Buntan as part of a loaded ONE 169 card inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand — the winner emerging as the new ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world champion.

While Meksen is 100 percent focused on the task at hand, she can't help but think about a potential clash with Rodrigues, who is not only the ONE atomweight Muay Thai world titleholder but also her teammate at Phuket Fight Club.

"For me, she’s not my opponent," Anissa Meksen told the South China Morning Post when asked about a potential clash with Rodrigues. "I don’t want to mix. I’m focused on my fight now and I don’t want to be in any kind of trouble. I don’t know her, and she doesn’t know me and it’s better this way."

With Rodrigues still holding onto her title and 'C18' mere hours away from attempting to claim her first 26 pounds of ONE Championship gold, we could potentially see a champion vs. champion clash between the two fan favorites in the future.

But first, Meksen will have to get past a very tough opponent at ONE 169.

---

Jackie Buntan ready to disrupt Anissa Meksen's plans at ONE 169

Standing in Anissa Meksen's way of a ONE world title is Jackie Buntan, a Filipino-American standout who has proven to be one of the heaviest hitters in all of women's combat sports.

Making her promotional debut in February 2021, Buntan has put together an impressive 6-1 run inside the Circle with noteworthy wins against Nat 'Wondergirl' Jaroonsak, Ekaterina Vandaryeva, Amber Kitchen, and most recently, Martine Michieletto.

If she can earn a big win over Meksen — a seven-time world champion in both kickboxing and Muay Thai — it will undoubtedly be the biggest victory of her career.

Who comes out on top and leaves with ONE gold wrapped around their waist this Friday in The Land of Smiles?

Fans in the United States and Canada can watch ONE 169: Malykhin vs. ‘Reug Reug’ live on Amazon Prime Video on Friday, November 8 in U.S. primetime.