Nong-O Gaiyanghadao is an established name in the fight game. At 37 years of age, he seems as passionate about fighting as a young fighter. In a conversation with Sportsmanor, Nong-O spoke about his previous fight with Nico Carrillo where he caused damage to his opponent’s legs with his crafty leg-kicks which clearly showed Carrillo that although there was a 12-year age gap between the fighters, Nong-O still had a great fight in him.
He was quick to calibrate the reason as to why he lost though, “While I knew that I damaged his legs, I failed to consider how his arms were still in good shape. So I had to come back and think about how to be more calm and calculated.”
This idea of using even a defeat to improve one’s game plan going into a fight was very appealing because this is a trait that Nong-O shows in many of his fights. One could clearly tell that he does have a certain game plan going into a fight that he sticks to. It was evident in the fight with Alaverdi Ramazanov where he weathered the first two rounds to retaliate on the third. In the interview, he discussed why sticking to the game plan is important to the fight game.
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Nong-O confessed that it was something that he had to work on for a long time. So what’s the game plan for Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek Uthai on April 5 at ONE Friday Fights 58? Unsurprisingly, he didn’t reveal it ahead of the fight. He also added that even his plan could go out of the window if Kulabdam’s team plans to counter his game plan in which case he would have to rely on his experience to adjust to the right.
Nong-O Gaiyanghadao spills the secrets of his longevity
Experience is something that Nong-O has in plenty. Many fighters do stack up a big number of fights but very few fighters compete at an elite level at the age of 37 and there is a lot of curiosity to know the secrets of this longevity. The foremost contributing factor to his longevity as a fighter that Nong-O cites was the importance of getting enough rest followed by the right nutrition.
He also detailed the importance of training effectively as opposed to training hard, “In the past when I was fighting 5 rounds, I was a technical fighter so I didn’t get seriously injured. I tried to dodge a lot of attacks and got out of the ring uninjured in most cases. So that did have a positive impact on my physical health as well.”
“Even with respect to training. In the past, I used to train in the old school style because all my instructors are old school but these days we have sport science and new technology that can help one train more effectively and make use of one’s strengths. I train for shorter hours but more effectively.”
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This opens an interesting conversation on whether newer fighters should rely more on newer training methodologies so that fighters could enjoy improved longevity in their fighting career which Nong-O does not agree with completely.
He says, “I feel it is best to combine both schools of Training. Training like a traditional Muay Thai fighter teaches you great technique while the newer technology helps in building strength to improve your physical health. So a combination of both would be best”
What are your thoughts on it? Let us know in the comments below.