Xiong Jing Nan apologizes for uncharacteristically missing weight against ‘Wondergirl’: “I’ll do better next time”

ONE women’s strawweight world champion Xiong Jing Nan was happy to come away with a victory in her special-rules striking match over Nat ‘Wondergirl’ Jaroonsak last week. However, she admitted that she dropped the ball when she missed weight and rendered the contest a catchweight.

‘The Panda’ won over her Thai opponent by technical knockout in the third round of their special-rules striking showdown at ONE Fight Night 14 on Prime Video on September 29 in Singapore.

35-year-old Xiong, however, failed two hydration tests and could not produce a third sample in the allowed time, forcing ONE to have the match played at a catchweight of 129 pounds instead of strawweight (125 pounds)

In an interview with the South China Morning Post following ONE Fight Night 14, Xiong Jing Nan owned up to the weight indiscretion and apologized for it, just as she vowed to do better in her next fight.

The Evolve MMA athlete said:

“I would like to apologize for missing weight, making this a catchweight. I will do better next time. In my past fights, I’ve always made hydration and weight. This is just one time.

“This time, it was different. It was a special rules match so I wanted to try a different way to pass the hydration and make the weight. But obviously, I failed it. But yes, it's a new trial. So next time I think I will go back to my old way to make weight and pass that hydration. I apologize for missing the weight but hopefully, you guys can understand.”

Watch the interview below:

Xiong Jing Nan relied on her tight hooks to get the better of ‘Wondergirl’ in their showdown. She got a few warnings for landing shots at the back of the head of her opponent but kept up the pressure.

The Chinese fighter made a ferocious late charge in the match, landing telling punches to which the 24-year-old Thai had no answers to. The match was officially waved off at the 2:42 mark of the third and final round.

It was fifth straight victory for Xiong Jing Nan and first since successfully defending the ONE women’s strawweight MMA world title in September last year against former atomweight world champion and now-retired Angela Lee.

‘Wondergirl', for her part, slumped to her second straight defeat.

The replay of ONE Fight Night 14 is available for free on ONE Championship’s official YouTube channel.