Lito Adiwang on would-be bonus for 23-second TKO of Adrian Mattheis: “I think we earned that”

Filipino strawweight fighter Lito Adiwang made an explosive return to competition last week, stopping Indonesian opponent Adrian Mattheis by technical knockout 23 seconds into their match. It was a victory that he felt was deserving of a performance bonus.

‘Thunder Kid’ marked his comeback at ONE Friday Fights 34 on September 22 at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, 18 months after suffering a knee injury.

Lito Adiwang knew what he needed to do right from the get-go, immediately putting pressure on Adrian Mattheis. He eventually landed a solid right to the chin that sent the ‘Papua Badboy’ staggering down the mat.

Seeing an opening, the Baguio native jumped on his opponent after, unleashing a barrage of punches that elicited little resistance from Mattheis, forcing the referee to call a stop to the contest at the 23-second mark of the opening round.

Following the victory, while he was expecting to be interviewed inside the ring and a performance bonus announcement, none came.

Asked by the South China Morning Post in the post-event interview session if he felt he deserved to receive a performance bonus, Lito Adiwang unabashedly answered in the affirmative.

He highlighted that he was actually gunning for it because the bonus would have gone a long way as he resumes his ONE campaign. The 30-year-old fighter said:

“I’m really chasing for that bonus. I really needed that and I’ll let the fans decide. I think we earned that.”

Watch the interview below:

Lito Adiwang suffered an ACL tear while battling compatriot Jeremy Miado in March 2022. He was initially set to make his return in January this year but recurring pain on his injured knee forced him to withdraw.

For his last fight, he trained with HIIT Studio in Bali, Indonesia, after deciding to leave his former group Team Lakay. He said he is settling well in his new camp and looking forward to further growing as a fighter under it.

The full replay of ONE Friday Fights 34 is available on ONE Championship’s official YouTube channel.