“It's a really cool feeling” - Jackie Buntan appreciative of immense support coming from the Philippines

Newly crowned ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world champion Jackie Buntan of the United States and the Philippines may have just inherited 26 pounds of gold over her shoulders, but she gained much more than that.

Buntan inherited the hopes and dreams of an entire nation with her victory over French-Algerian legend 'C18' Anissa Meksen at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug on Prime Video last weekend, and she could not be more proud.

The 27-year-old comes from a Filipino background, a country that is known for its rich combat sports tradition with legendary names such as eight-division boxing world champion Manny Pacquiao and flyweight icon Nonito Donaire.

Speaking to ONE Championship in a recent interview, Buntan shared her thoughts on her Filipino pride.

The Boxing Works representative stated:

"It's a really cool feeling and it's cool to know that I'll always have the support of my people even if I wasn't even born there and they're still taking me in. So that's one thing about Filipinos. We're always very passionate. And if you're Filipino, doing something big, they're gonna be rocking with you no matter what."

Buntan scored a major upset over the legendary Meksen to capture the inaugural ONE women's strawweight kickboxing gold at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug on Prime Video.

ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug on Prime Video took place live from the historic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand on Saturday, November 9. Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action via replay on-demand with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

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Jackie Buntan says nothing surprised her with Anissa Meksen: "I was able to see everything"

Newly crowned kickboxing queen Jackie Buntan says fighting Anissa Meksen wasn't as difficult as she thought it was going to be, thanks to an intense training camp.

She told ONE:

"I felt confident right from the get, right from the start, when I stepped in there, I think after the first round, she was kind of playing it more defensive. I was expecting her to come and surge at me, pressure me, and by the start of the third round, I felt pretty confident being able to do it, everything we've been working on. I felt like I was able to see everything. Nothing really came as a surprise either. So yeah, I was confident the whole time."

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the latest news and updates surrounding Jackie Buntan's next fight.