- George Chung
- Jan 22
- 2 min read
On January 24, Tawanchai PK Saenchai returns to headline ONE 170 another exciting ONE Championship event. The ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Champion will defend his title against Superbon at ONE 170 inside Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
As he prepares for his upcoming title defense, Tawanchai reflected on 2024 to discuss where he felt things went awry. Despite winning his only match, he believes he didn't reach his full potential.
He aims to change that narrative at ONE 170.
"I can't say that 2024 was a good year for me. I was mentally and physically down. But now, I'm bouncing back and ready to start this year strong," Tawanchai recalled to ONE.
Although he secured a win in his last bout against Jo Nattawut, Tawanchai was dissatisfied with the majority decision. Fans also expressed their displeasure with the judges through contentious roars.
The reaction left Tawanchai puzzled and disappointed.
"At that time, I cut myself off from social media. I didn't want to know anything. I felt disappointed and frustrated. But I'm not the judges. I just did my job. But I don't understand why everyone booed me so much," the featherweight champion explained.
Win or lose, every match is a learning experience. For the Thai star, he chooses to focus on the positives after being pushed to his limit.
"The last fight made me grow. I learned a lot. I saw what was wrong, a lot of things. I was like, 'Oh yeah, that's how it is.' I learned from my mistakes. It gave me a lot of experience," Tawanchain stated.
The five-round battle with "Smokin" Jo left Tawanchai with lingering injuries. Following the fight, he took time to recover and regain his health.
This downtime allowed him to assess his own shortcomings and identify areas for improvement.
"After my last fight, the doctor advised me to take two to three months off to recover from my injury. Now, I am 100 percent recovered," the defending champion remarked.
"When I take a break from training, I watch my own videos to find my mistakes so that I can fix them and regain my confidence or make those who don't believe in me believe and follow me again."
Displeased with his results in 2024, Tawanchai and his team are ensuring everything is perfect for his title defense on January 24.
The reigning ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Champion wants to demonstrate the improvements in his game with a signature victory over one of today's top talents.
"I trained extremely hard for this fight. My boss, the PK Saenchai owner, supervises me every day. I saw the results from the last fight, and it hurt. It made me think that I had to improve and change myself," Tawanchai said.
ONE 170 will be broadcast live and free on ONE's official YouTube channel at 6:30 a.m. EST/3:30 a.m. PST on Friday, January 24.
