Denis Puric keen to prove the 'f***ing haters' wrong in dream fight vs Rodtang: "Nobody believed me"

Denis Puric has long had his eyes on a megafight against Rodtang Jitmuangnon, but even the people within his close circle seemed to laugh off the former's idea of facing one of the best in the business.

Not that their opinions matter, though. 'The Bosnian Menace' has proven fans and naysayers wrong throughout his career for as long as he can remember, and he's pumped to do it once more inside the sold-out Impact Arena in Bangkok come ONE 167 on June 7.

With under 24 hours to go until he faces the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion in a kickboxing duel inside the Thai capital, the Team CSK athlete reflected on the road leading up to his hotly-anticipated showdown against Rodtang.

Denis Puric had this to say on the DonttapPodcast:

"Nobody believed me, bro. Nobody believed me. They're like, 'Buddy, you're ready to retire. What's wrong with you wanting these big fights? Sit your a*s down and enjoy the life.' But I was telling everyone I'm going out there, I'm gonna chase this fight."

The striking veteran continued:

"And a couple years down the road, hey, look where we are now, you know? Even some people, even now, there's a lot of f***ing haters, man, they're saying how did this happen or this guy doesn't deserve this."

Watch the full interview here:

Of course, the 39-year-old had to do his part to make his dream a reality.

Following his third victory – after triumphs over Tagir Khalilov and Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat – under the ONE banner against Jacob Smith, the Bosnian-Canadian athlete immediately made his intentions known to Circle-side color commentator Mitch Chilson.

And it didn't take the promotion long to iron out a fight that is now set to be part of the promotion's stacked ONE 167 this Friday.

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Denis Puric wants to make the most of Rodtang war

Having attained one of his wishes in the promotion, Denis Puric now hopes to make the most of his opportunity when he dukes it out against Rodtang in a catchweight kickboxing contest inside the Impact Arena.

In a separate interview with the promotion, 'The Bosnian Menace' promises to hold nothing back against 'The Iron Man,' who he holds in high regard.

Denis Puric shared:

"I have nothing but respect for Rodtang. But, to be honest, he's only fought one ranked fighter since he won the belt. I think that we need to put [him] to the test."

Active Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch the entire ONE 167 card live in U.S. primetime for free this Friday, June 7.