“He'll do good” - Aung La N Sang on Tial Thang’s big challenge against Jeremy Pacatiw

Aung La N Sang believes that his Burmese compatriot Tial Thang has what it takes to emerge victorious against Jeremy Pacatiw in Manila this December. Tial makes his way back to the circle to take on the Filipino star at ONE 164: Pacio vs. Brooks at the Mall of Asia Arena on December 3.

In an interview with South China Morning Post, Aung La said that Tial could make a case for himself to get into the top five bantamweight rankings if he beats Pacatiw.

Aung La N Sang, however, admitted that getting a win over the Team Lakay fighter would be a tough challenge to get past. ‘The Burmese Python’ said:

“That's a tough fight…He'll do good. But Jeremy is a tough opponent, and I believe he was ranked top five at one point. So now we're in the game after we beat this guy. If he's able to pull this off, we're in the mix now. So in the last few fights, he hasn't had any easy fights at all.”

Tial had one of the most promising starts of any bantamweight in ONE Championship, going 3-0 in his first three fights. That run culminated in a second-round knockout of Indonesian fighter Paul Lumihi at ONE: Unbreakable III in February 2021.

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Aung La N Sang ready for firefight against Yushin Okami

Although he’s helping Tial prepare for the bout against Pacatiw, Aung La N Sang is also neck-deep in training, gearing up for his matchup against Japanese legend Yushin Okami.

Aung La and Okami's match is part of the stacked ONE 163: Akimoto vs. Petchtanong card that is set for November 19 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

The two mixed martial arts icons are considered the greatest middleweight fighters to have come out of Asia, but Aung La wants that distinction all to himself. In an interview with the South China Morning Post, the former ONE middleweight and light heavyweight world champion said:

“Tune in, it's going to be a fun fight for the fans. We're going to find out who the best Asian middleweight is. I've prepared really well for it.”