"I'll be back for the belt" - Jacob Smith still confident he's destined to be a ONE world champion

Jacob Smith is ready to move past his loss to Rodtang Jitmuangnon at ONE 169 and work his way back into the world title picture.

The British slugger had a night to forget against 'The Iron Man' inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, earlier this month.

Just as he did in their first fight, the Birkenhead native was largely forced to play second fiddle to another pristine performance from the Jitmuangnon Gym star, who wasn't eligible to reclaim his ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title after coming in 0.5 pounds above the divisional limit on weigh-in day.

Adding salt to the wound, the 32-year-old subsequently lost his spot in the rankings. Despite how things have played out, Jacob Smith is confident that he will find a route out of this stretch and claim the 26 pounds of gold in his next outing.

The Muay Thai striker told the Bangkok Post's Nick Atkin recently:

"I'll be back for the belt 100 percent. It didn't go the way I wanted it to go."

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Jacob Smith praises Rodtang following humbling ONE 169 loss

As painful as it was to absorb another crushing defeat on the global stage of ONE Championship, the striking specialist does not want to let the bitter taste after defeat linger long.

At the same time, he refuses to take anything away from Rodtang, who came in firing on all cylinders despite being forced to surrender his 26 pounds of gold just one night before their flyweight Muay Thai war.

In the same interview, Jacob Smith tipped his hat to the former divisional king, saying:

"Sometimes you just have to give credit where credit is due.”

The ONE 169 replay is available at watch.onefc.com. Fans in the United States and Canada can relive all the action via Amazon Prime Video.