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Jackie Buntan did not bat an eye when she earned the call to compete for the inaugural ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world title.
The Filipino-American superstar was scheduled to compete against multi-time world champion Anissa Meksen for 26 pounds of gold at ONE Fight Night 23 in July. Unfortunately, she suffered a broken toe in sparring during fight camp.
Now back at 100 percent, the Filipino-American striker is ready to tango alongside the pound-for-pound great in one of three world title fights set for ONE 169 inside Bangkok's Lumpinee Stadium this Friday, Nov. 8.
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In a pre-fight exchange with Beyond Kickboxing, Jackie Buntan admitted that the opportunity to contest for the ONE world title didn't come as much of a surprise:
"Having it go straight into a title [fight] wasn't shocking for me. I know I haven't had any kickboxing fights, but I think I'm probably the most active strawweight in the ONE Championship roster for women.
"So I think it made sense to put me in there for the inaugural title shot."
Jackie Buntan admits she's in a better position to vie for a world title
While she may be just 15 minutes away from a career-defining moment, the Boxing Works martial artist needs to be at the top of the game if she wants to stand any chance of pulling off an upsetting win over the French-Algerian livewire.
After all, the 27-year-old learned a thing or two after suffering a loss to Swedish powerhouse Smilla Sundell in their ONE strawweight Muay Thai world championship contest.
Recognizing her shortcomings, she admits that there have been some tweaks in her camp to set her up for a second shot at ONE gold.
Jackie Buntan told ONE Championship:
"I feel a bit more lighter with my mentality and especially in this training camp, not to put so much pressure on myself, and just really trust the work I've been doing because that's all I can do."
North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can catch the entire ONE 169 card live in U.S. primetime for free.
