Tawanchai stepped inside the ring against Jo Nattawut in his third title defense of the Muay Thai World Championship at ONE 167. The defending Champion looked really sharp on his feet in the first two rounds, landing vicious kicks on Nattawut at will. However, it was in the closing moments of the second round that Nattawut found his groove, and it came in the form of closing the distance and focusing on landing punches rather than playing the kicking game.
Jo Nattawut had great success in the third round, where he not only pressured Tawanchai the entire round but also landed combinations on the defending champion, leaving him with some swelling on his left eye and a nod of acknowledgment to close the round. The fourth round was no different as Nattawut closed the distance once again and started countering Tawanchai’s comparatively poor boxing defense.
Regardless, Tawanchai made Nattwaut pay at every chance he got and managed to trouble him with body kicks whenever he was able to keep Nattawut away from striking range. Heading into the fifth, it looked like anybody’s fight, with even the commentators going with a 2-2 scorecard.
Both the fighters looked calmer in the fifth round, with Nattawut once again keeping himself in the striking range, even if it meant eating a couple of kicks to the body. This time around, however, Tawanchai walked forward a visibly tired Nattawut, who seemed to throw less compared to the last four rounds.
Having eaten the best shots that Nattawut had to give, Tawachai was the least scared to close the distance and continued to press forward to not only look more dominant in the final round, but also landed more strikes to close the last round.
Tawanchai defends his gold against Jo Nattawut and secures his eighth straight victory
After everything was said and done, judges’ scored it in the favor of Tawanchai via way of majority decision as he defended his Featherwieght Muay Thai championship for a record third time. The win also marked his second straight win against Jo Nattawut at ONE 167.
“I really have nothing to say.” Tawanchai said after the victory. Speaking about his gameplan in the post-fight interview, “I really have nothing to say, only that he is great.” He said. “I really have nothing to say, other than, if I disappoint you, I am sorry.”
Tawanchai’s reaction and the crowd’s response during the announcement also raised several eyebrows and it almost appeared as if he wasn’t happy with the decision either. However, the fight was more closer than probably Tawanchai realises, and while it might not have been as dominant as one would have expected, the defending champion did enough to get the job done.
With that win, Tawanchai has now back to back wins over Jo Nattawut, who has seemingly appeared as the biggest challenge to Tawachai’s reign even in defeat.