“He's stiff and not as fast as me” – Roman Kryklia breaks down his advantages over opponent Alex Roberts

Ukrainian striker Roman Kryklia sees himself having a speed advantage over Alex Roberts and is out to capitalize on that when they battle for the inaugural ONE heavyweight Muay Thai world title this week.

The two will headline ONE Fight Night 17 on Prime Video on December 8 at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

32-year-old Kryklia is seeking to become a two-sport ONE world champion, adding the Muay Thai gold to the light heavyweight kickboxing belt he already holds. Australian Roberts, for his part, is looking to make a ONE debut to remember by becoming a title holder in his first outing with the promotion.

In an interview with onefc.com, Roman Kryklia shared that they have studied Roberts and know exactly what he has to do, saying:

“I have an advantage in speed. I hope to stun him with some unpredictable attacks. I'm working with my coach to understand his style, and what kind of combinations are best to use against him. His weaknesses are that he's stiff and not as fast as me.”

Roman Kryklia was last in action in November 2022, where he won the ONE heavyweight kickboxing world grand prix title. It was his fifth victory in as many matches since debuting in the promotion in 2019.

ONE Fight Night 17 can be seen live and for free by North American viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

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Demetrious Johnson is a fan of Roman Kryklia’s game

MMA legend Demetrious Johnson is a fan of the game of towering striker Roman Kryklia, especially how the Ukrainian fighter has successfully combined his assets of size and speed with much success.

‘Mighty Mouse’ shared this in an interview with Joe Rogan on his podcast last year, saying:

"There’s a kickboxer in ONE. He’s f**king massive and he’s got a f**king six-pack, he’s got good pecs, he looks like a superhero, and he’s like bop, bop, bop, high kick, uppercut, right hand. I was like ‘Oh my God, this is amazing!’ That’s one of the things I love about ONE Championship is you get the purest form of the martial art."

These are the same qualities that light heavyweight kickboxing king Roman Kryklia will be banking on as he goes for his second ONE world title at ONE Fight Night 17 on Prime Video on December 8 in Bangkok.