Jo Nattawut keeps a cool head before last-minute fight with Chingiz Allazov

Jo Nattawut has been elevated to the Grand Prix semifinals against Chingiz Allazov at ONE: Only the Brave this Friday, January 28.

Ever the professional, "Smokin" Jo is not sweating the last-minute change, which came as a result of Marat Grigorian's health protocol-related pullout.

In an interview with ONE Championship, the 32-year-old said he is keeping a cool head amid the fight card's flurry of changes:

“Every fighter is different. Everyone is different. If the opponent changes at the last minute, you’ve got to deal with it. Especially now."

Nattawut was supposed to fight Dovydas Rimkus in a Grand Prix alternate bout. Grigorian's exit fast-tracked his rise up the featherweight kickboxing tournament ladder.

Still, the Thai veteran is practically fighting on a level playing field come Friday night. Allazov, likewise, had his game plan altered at the last moment as he guns for a finals berth and ultimately a kickboxing world title shot.

Speaking to ONE Championship, the Georgian striker broke down the differences between his two opponents:

“I trained all my camp to fight against Marat Grigorian, but I changed my opponent to Jo Nattawut. Jo is a good opponent – now I focus 100 percent on him. I feel ready. Preparation has been good. It’s not the same style of fighter. Marat is a forward fighter, a boxing-style fighter. Jo is a Thai fighter. He goes at distance. He throws kicks. He throws punches. I have prepared one week for him. I changed my style a little bit. But for me, it’s no problem."

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Jo Nattawut and Chingiz Allazov seek consistency in respective ONE Championship runs

Jo Nattawut has had a successful run in the ONE Circle so far since returning in late 2021.

Following a loss to the legendary Giorgio Petrosyan in August 2019, Nattawut knocked out Yurik Davtyan at ONE: NextGen 2 more than two years later. He is now looking to start a winning streak with a win over Allazov.

Meanwhile, Allazov has had an up-and-down stretch with ONE Championship so far. After alternating between a loss and a win in his last two fights with Bellator, he went through the same pattern in his first two ONE outings.

With a win against Nattawut, Allazov will start his first winning streak in nearly four years.

Neither man can afford to lose at ONE: Only the Brave. Expect nothing but hard-hitting kickboxing action from these two veteran strikers.