Jackie Buntan says staying champion is more difficult than becoming one: “The true test”

Newly crowned ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world champion Jackie Buntan has a shiny new 26-pound belt draped over her shoulders. But the 27-year-old Filipina-American star says winning the gold is much easier than keeping it. The real test is staying champion.

Speaking to Combat Sports Today in a recent interview, Buntan talked about her world-title-winning performance.

She said:

"It is true. It's 26 pounds. It's a very heavy belt. It's right here in my living room, right there."

Buntan added:

"I'm satisfied I reached this goal, like you said, I've had my eyes on [it] for so long. But there are a thousand percent more things for me to prove. Getting the belt is one thing. The true test is keeping that belt, defending it, staying on top, and creating that legacy. So there's definitely more to prove."

Buntan defeated French-Algerian kickboxing legend 'C18' Anissa Meksen earlier this month by unanimous decision to capture the inaugural ONE women's strawweight kickboxing world title.

They fought at ONE 169, which went down live from the historic Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand last Saturday, Nov. 9.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action via replay on-demand with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.

Jackie Buntan credits Boxing Works team for helping her become world champion

Filipina-American superstar Jackie Buntan is now a world champion, and she has her team at Boxing Works to thank, as well as longtime coach Brian Popejoy.

She told Beyond Kick:

"I've been with Boxing Works since I was a kid and the environment my coach Brian [Popejoy] has made is such a welcoming environment. Everyone is so like-minded and we all work hard and we all focus on the art of it. I think that's the main thing. Everyone is like minded at that gym, which makes it easy to work together and succeed."