'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion Tawanchai PK Saenchai has starred in many barnburners in his four-year ONE Championship tenure. However, no one pushed him to his absolute limit other than 'Smokin' Jo Nattawut in their June 2024 rematch.
Incensed by his unanimous decision defeat in their October 2023 kickboxing bout, Nattawut took their rematch as an opportunity to exact his revenge while also ending the 26-year-old's impressive reign over the 155-pound Muay Thai division.
Nattawut brought the fight to Tawanchai, showing how hungry he was to win his first world championship in ONE. However, Tawanchai stayed in step with the challenger and fought hard to prevent an upset, utilizing his counter-striking to catch Nattawut off guard.
Trending
When the dust settled, the PK Saenchai Muay Thai Gym product remained on the throne via majority decision.
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Rewatch the entire fight below, which ONE shared on YouTube:
Dashing Nattawut's dreams of gold led to Tawanchai earning his eighth straight victory and his third successful defense of the 155-pound Muay Thai crown. He extended those streaks to nine and four, respectively, with a second-round TKO of ONE featherweight kickboxing world champion Superbon in January.
Superbon expected Tawanchai to win at ONE 172
Tawanchai needed to defeat Japanese kickboxing star Masaaki Noiri at ONE 172 last month to win the ONE interim featherweight kickboxing world championship and have a unification bout with Superbon over the undisputed featherweight kickboxing gold.
However, he suffered a heartbreaking TKO in the third round that surprised Superbon.
In a recent interview with combat sports journalist Nick Atkin, the Superbon Training Camp founder said:
"Yeah, everyone was shocked, I was shocked too. I thought I was going to have the opportunity to rematch with Tawanchai, but things changed. So I need to focus on something else."
Watch the entire interview below:
