"It's shown that I have heart" - Jackie Buntan shares how being Filipino-American defined who she is as a martial artist

Last May, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month was celebrated, and ONE Championship highlighted two of its stars with Asian American heritage: Johan Ghazali and Jackie Buntan.

Both athletes were interviewed by the promotion in a featured video, where they narrated the perks of having two cultures growing up and how it helped them in life.

Among the two, Buntan thoroughly discussed how her Filipino-American roots have helped her become a household name on the global martial arts stage, as she stated:

"I would describe my Filipino-American identity as the best of both worlds, from both sides of the culture. My Filipino-American roots definitely helped shaped me as a martial artist. It's shown that I have heart, tenacity, and I have grit. Having the freedom to dream and the freedom to believe in whatever I want to achieve. Being able to represent what you do, and doing it at the highest level, there's no better blessing than that."

Additionally, she commended the world's largest martial arts organization for giving everyone in Asia a platform where they can showcase their skills and talents worldwide, as she continued:

"Growing up, there wasn't really a big stage that I looked up to. Being on ONE's stage to represent Filipinos and Asians on the highest level means the world to me. I'd love for the world to know that not just Filipinos, but Asians in general, anything we put our mind to, we'll succeed and achieve it. My name is Jackie Buntan, and I'm a proud Filipino-American."

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Jackie Buntan looks for her world title breakthrough against Anissa Meksen at ONE Fight Night 23

On July 5, Buntan will have a second opportunity to capture her first-ever 26-pound golden belt as she takes on Anissa Meksen for the inaugural strawweight kickboxing world title inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

It will be the Boxing Works representative's second attempt at ONE gold after coming up short in April 2022 at ONE 156 against Smilla Sundell and receiving a unanimous decision defeat.

ONE Fight Night 23 is available live and free to all Prime Video subscribers in North America in U.S. primetime on July 5.