"I've put on a little bit of muscle" - Anissa Meksen prioritizing strength to match Jackie Buntan's ferocious finishing power

Anissa Meksen is a big believer in fighting fire with fire. To become ONE's inaugural women's strawweight kickboxing world champion, the Algerian-French star knows she must overcome the explosive force behind Jackie Buntan's strikes.

As such, Meksen made sure to focus on adding more fight-ending power to her lightning-fast combos in arguably the biggest match of her storied career at ONE 169: Malykhin vs Reug Reug this coming Nov. 8 at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

With the championship bout being contested at 125 pounds, 'C18' said in a ONE Championship interview that her body feels fresher and stronger than ever:

“It’s my natural weight, so I haven’t had to care about weight or my diet or anything like that. I’ve just stayed focused on my training."

Moreover, the multi-time world champion confidently shared that she can now match Buntan's scary firepower, adding:

"I’ve just put on a little bit of muscle for more power, but that’s it."

Buntan's terrifying knockout ability was on full display in her one-round starching of Diandra Martin at ONE Fight Night 10 last year.

Anissa Meksen, however, seems unfazed and will be in search of her own decisive finish to claim 26 pounds of gold.

Jackie Buntan says winning the title against Anissa Meksen makes it sweeter

Jackie Buntan understands why she's considered the underdog against arguably one of the most decorated female strikers of all time.

Anissa Meksen, after all, has pretty much won everywhere she goes and will look to add a ONE Championship belt to her trophy case.

Then again, Buntan knows winning against an iconic figure will help cement her legacy in the sport. The Filipino-American rising star told ONE:

"It would mean the world. Absolutely everything. You know, it’s the reason why I do this. There’s more to it, but that’s obviously the end goal, is you want to work towards something that solidifies your greatness, that solidifies your name in the sport."

ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug will air live in US Primetime free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in North America