“Finally, it’s my time to shine” - Petchtanong Petchfergus overcomes early struggles in ONE to challenge for world title

Petchtanong Petchfergus is ready to silence the doubters once and for all at ONE 163.

Before signing with ONE, Petchtanong was a highly-credentialed Muay Thai fighter who headlined events at the historic Lumpinee Stadium as a young teenager. He signed with ONE as a kickboxer after a three-year layoff, and nobody knew what to expect from him.

Unfortunately, the Thailand native was quickly written off after losing by a devastating six-second knockout in his promotional debut against Capitan Petchyindee.

However, Petchtanong took the loss as a lesson and returned to the circle. It was the right call as he put on an impressive performance in his next outing against Zhang Chenglong, which he won by unanimous decision. While speaking with ONE, he had this to say about overcoming his debut loss:

“I might have started in ONE with a struggle at first. But I’ve been trying to climb up to the top five rankings. It took two years – which is longer than I thought, longer than my fellow fighters – but finally, it’s my time to shine.”

The 37-year-old has a formidable opponent waiting at ONE 163. Hiroki Akimoto is motivated to defend the ONE bantamweight Kickboxing world title for the first time. Nobody could have expected Petchtanong to be fighting in a world championship fight after losing his promotional debut, but the loss motivated him to come back stronger.

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Petchtanong Petchfergus planned to retire before losing to Capitan Petchyindee in ONE Championship debut

Petchtanong Petchfergus was on the brink of retirement before signing with ONE Championship. Once he was knocked out by Capitan Petchyindee, assumptions were made about Petchtanong being unable to compete at an elite level. During an interview with ONE, he had this to say:

“I actually planned to retire for a while, but when I lost to Capitan, I became more motivated and wanted to get redemption. I was determined to come back stronger. I want to prove to everyone that I still have great potential even when I’m 37 already.”

If Petchtanong can pull off an upset against Hiroki Akimoto, he will have one of the greatest comeback stories of all time. It is easier said than done, considering Akimoto is 30 years old and hitting his peak. With that said, the 37-year-old might have one more trick up his sleeve at ONE 163.

Check out the ONE Championship 163 fight card featuring Petchtanong Petchfergus vs. Hiroki Akimoto below: