Why Ritu Phogat is the underdog against Tiffany Teo

‘The Indian Tigress’ Ritu Phogat makes her long-awaited return to ONE Championship at ONE 161 on September 30th. Welcoming her back to the Circle will be Singapore native Tiffany ‘No Chill’ Teo.

Celebrating Phogat’s return, ONE Championship shared a clip of ‘The Indian Tigress’ having a little fun in between sessions at the gym.

“Is “The Indian Tigress” 🐅 ready to roll through Tiffany Teo at ONE 161 on September 29? @rituphogat48”

The last time we saw Ritu Phogat compete, it was in the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Grand Prix Championship Final against Stamp Fairtex. Phogat came up short in the tournament final, losing to the fan-favorite via second-round submission. Prior to that, the Indian wrestling star earned three straight wins over Lin Heqin, Meng Bo, and Jenelyn Olsim, the latter two coming as part of the tournament.

Phogat’s extended time away was largely due to a shoulder injury. In that time, Phogat has been able to fully heal while also working to further evolve her game. Speaking at the ONE 161 virtual media event, Phogat shared what happened during her time away from competition and the lessons learned from her loss to Stamp Fairtex at ONE: Winter Warriors.

"My last match I couldn't win. I have learnt a lot from that loss. I injured my shoulder also so I wanted to recover completely and now I'm ready. I have implemented a lot of new things in my game."

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Tiffany Teo will be a tough task for the returning Ritu Phogat at ONE 161

Tiffany Teo has only lost on two separate occasions in her career, both coming against reigning ONE women’s strawweight world champion Xiong Jing Nan. Now, ‘No Chill’ is bringing her skills to the atomweight division. Boasting a 57% finish rate, Teo has proven her ability to get it done on the feet and on the ground. On the ground, however, this is where Teo’s skills really shine.

Educating herself in both wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu before even stepping into the cage, Teo could be a tough outing for Ritu Phogat. She once again proved in her latest victory in the Circle just how dangerous she is on the ground, submitting a skilled striker in China’s Meng Bo in the second round of their match.

Of course, with world-class wrestling skills, as a member of the famous Phogat family, ‘The Indian Tigress’ can hang with the best wrestlers in the world. However, as Stamp Fairtex showed in their December 2021 meeting, BJJ is her achilles heel. At least, it was.

Ritu Phogat has had plenty of time to put a renewed focus on some of the underdeveloped aspects of her game. It’s quite possible ‘The Indian Tigress’ could come out with a whole new set of skills in her ONE 161 return. Either way, there is no doubt that Tiffany Teo will be ready to spoil the welcome back party for Phogat.

Watch her highlight reel below: