“He’s Teaching Me a Lot” Nat “Wondergirl” Jaroonsak Reveals Insight From the Training Camp With Olympic Gold Medalist

Nat ‘Wondergirl,’ Jaroonsak wants to make a statement in her next match, and she’s pulling out all the stops to make sure that she delivers.

At ONE Fight Night 14: Stamp vs. Ham on Friday, September 29, the Muay Thai phenom will face ONE Women’s Strawweight MMA World Champion Xiong Jing Nan in a special rules striking contest at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Wondergirl Training with Manus Boonjumnong in preparation for the clash against Xiong Jing Nan

‘Wondergirl’ has been making her transition to mixed martial arts over the last 18 months, and she currently holds one win and one loss in the all-encompassing sport. The 24-year-old star will get an incredible opportunity to test her striking skills against the division’s longtime queen in her upcoming bout – in a fight that will be the first of its kind in the world’s largest martial arts organization. It is set to feature three three-minute rounds, and the athletes will only be allowed to throw hand strikes while wearing four-ounce MMA gloves.

Should the match go the distance, it will be scored on a 10-point must system. To prepare for arguably the biggest fight of her career, Jaroonsak has enlisted the help of 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist Manus Boonjumnong to get her ready.’We brought in Manus to train for the fight. Training has been going well. I feel good about my training with him, and he’s teaching me a lot. Boxing is all about footwork and head movement,’ she told ONE in an interview ahead of her match.’For me, it’s kind of hard, though. Like you can’t teep or kick with your legs. I can just use my two hands and upper body.’

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With over a decade of experience and over 50 Muay Thai matches to her name, Jaroonsak no doubt has the striking chops to excel in this type of contest. But she will need to adjust her game slightly, as she won’t be allowed to use a couple of her most-feared weapons. Meanwhile, Xiong has utilized her striking prowess to devastating effect throughout her ONE tenure. For this match, though, she will also need to tweak her approach because she won’t be able to move as freely as in a mixed martial arts match. She does have a background in the ‘sweet science,’ however, and she even was part of China’s National Boxing Team early in her career.

Jaroonsak is not underestimating Jing Nan’s striking caliber 

Jaroonsak is aware of how dangerous ‘The Panda’ can be on her feet, and she plans to be ready for whatever her opponent might throw at her come fight night.’I’m not really sure about my game plan. Xiong can fight both ways. She can go forward or backward, so my game plan depends on what she gives me,’ she said.

‘I’m not sure [how she’ll approach it] because this fight is not for the belt. It’s a special rules fight. So maybe she’ll go forward, be aggressive, or just play it safe and try to score.'”