Ilias Ennahachi confident he'll outfox 'very smart' Petchtanong at ONE 171: "I never lose to a Thai"

Moroccan-Dutch striking dynamo Ilias Ennahachi knows he cannot underestimate what Petchtanong Petchfergus brings to the table. That said, he remains sure he will beat the Thai to stay perfect under the ONE Championship banner.

The former ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion is back in action against the decorated striker when the promotion returns to the Lusail Sports Arena for its blockbuster sophomore outing in Qatar.

The Bangkok Post caught up with Ilias Ennahachi to get his thoughts on his impending war against Petchtanong at ONE 171: Qatar.

As confident as he is, the S&B Gym superstar acknowledged that this is anything but a walk in the park due to Petchtanong's decorated resume and his experience fighting at the top of the kickboxing and Muay Thai mountain:

"It's not an easy fight. He's a smart fighter, also he has more kickboxing fights than Muay Thai fights. But I never lose to a Thai fighter. Yeah, I'm 28. I'm very hungry. He's a very humble guy, a very smart guy. But now is my time."

Watch the full interview here:

ONE 171: Qatar will be available to fight fans at watch.onefc.com this Thursday, Feb. 20. The card emanates live from the Lusail Sports Arena.

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Recapping Ilias Ennahachi's perfect 5-0 run in ONE Championship

Ilias Ennahachi spots a 40-3 resume heading into Qatar. And, as he mentioned, he remains perfect when competing against Thais.

His last victory over a fighter from 'The Land of Smiles' came at ONE: Fists of Fury in February 2021. That evening, the 28-year-old handed Superlek his first – and only – defeat under the ONE spotlight.

Meanwhile, in his promotional bow, the Moroccan-Dutch megastar sent Petchdam to the shadow realm in the third round to lay his hands on the ONE flyweight kickboxing world title.

Other athletes that have fallen to his Dutch kickboxing style in the promotion include Hiroki Akimoto, Aliasghar Ghodratisaraskan and Wang Wenfeng.