“I’ve been through bad days” - Nabil Anane admits the mental hurdle of losing to Superlek hurt more than physical pain

ONE interim bantamweight Muay Thai world champion Nabil Anane said his defeat to reigning divisional king Superlek Kiatmoo9 in their first encounter two years ago hit him on so many levels. It is something he is looking to bounce back from in their scheduled rematch this week.

The 20-year-old Algerian-Thai phenom is out to unify the bantamweight Muay Thai division's championship belts when he takes on 'The Kicking Machine' at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang on March 23 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

He is also shooting for a payback on the Thai superstar who knocked him out in their first encounter in June 2023 in a flyweight Muay Thai battle marking his ONE Championship debut.

In a feature on him by Fightlore Official on YouTube in line with his unification bid, Nabil Anane opened up about the mental sting of his defeat to Superlek last time around.

The 6-foot-4 Team Mehdi Zatout standout said:

"It’s when I lost against Superlek. It’s not during the fight; it’s after the fight. I’ve been through bad days, but not for so long. I just forgot it. It’s just the past."

Watch the feature below:

To Nabil Anane's credit, however, he has turned things around after the rude welcome he had from Superlek. He won his next six matches, including his impressive first-round TKO of top bantamweight contender Nico Carrillo in January, to claim the interim belt and set up the rematch with his tormentor.

Superlek-Anane II is one of five world title fights on offer at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang, which is available on pay-per-view via watch.onefc.com.

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Nabil Anane says endurance could be the deciding factor in Superlek rematch

Nabil Anane is viewing his scheduled rematch with Superlek Kiatmoo9 at ONE 172 as another test in endurance, which he hopes to finally hurdle unlike in their first encounter.

He spoke about it on the Fightlore Official feature, highlighting that whoever ends up having more to dish out as the rematch goes deep should decide the outcome of the contest.

Anane said:

"I think he has good endurance. He doesn’t have any problems in the later rounds. But it’s been quite long since he fought five rounds. Last fight he fought, it’s only one round against [Jonathan] Haggerty. Me too, I fought only one round. So, let’s see."

Superlek, who currently holds the bantamweight Muay Thai and flyweight kickboxing belts, was last in action in September, where he KO'd erstwhile bantamweight Muay Thai king Jonathan Haggerty in just 49 seconds.

Anane also had a quick title victory back in January with his TKO of Nico Carrillo in the first round to become interim champion.