ONE Championship targets Tawanchai v Superbon title fight for Doha or Tokyo – or even Bangkok’s Impact Arena
- Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong confirms three major venues in the running to host the rebooked Muay Thai super fight
- ‘The fans want to see it. I don’t have anything to say to Superbon other than I’ll see you in the ring,’ Tawanchai says
Tawanchai PK Saenchai has confirmed he will face Superbon Singha Mawynn next, with ONE Championship considering three different big cities to host the Muay Thai super fight.
The ONE featherweight champ was set to defend his belt against Superbon on October 7 but the former kickboxing king withdrew injured.
Tawanchai instead ground out a decision against “Smokin’” Jo Nattawut in a three-round kickboxing fight at Lumpinee Stadium, and admitted he was not at his best.
“The next fight will be with Superbon,” Tawanchai said after his fight. “There has been a lot of changes there with the injuries.
“But the fans want to see it. I don’t have anything to say to Superbon other than I’ll see you in the ring.”
After undergoing an MRI on his calf tear on September 22, Superbon told the Post he would return to full training around mid-October – and called for ONE to rebook the fight for Qatar.
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That seemed to be music to the ears of the Singapore-based organisation’s CEO and chairman.
“Doha or Tokyo,” Chatri told the Post when asked which city the fight could now take place in.
ONE 165 in Qatar, which the Post understands is slated for December 1, will mark the return to the martial arts promotion of “numbered events” after nearly 12 months.
It is believed the organisation will then return to the Japanese capital in late January, for the first time since a pair of blockbuster shows in 2019.
Neither event has been officially confirmed by the promotion, however.
“Maybe Bangkok at Impact Arena,” Chatri added, suggesting an imminent return to the 11,000-seat venue, which has not hosted a ONE event since January 2023.
ONE has largely been confined to the 5,000-seat Lumpinee Stadium since February, running its weekly Friday Fights shows out of the famed venue, as well as most its monthly Fight Night cards on Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service.
But a return to the Singapore Indoor Stadium for ONE Fight Night 15 last month has seemingly marked a move back towards bigger venues.
Chatri teased “big news coming” in a Facebook post this week, with ONE’s first event in Qatar reportedly less than six weeks away.
