“I Took the Fun Out of It” – Janet Todd Takes Lessons From Her Last Loss as She Prepares to Face Off Against Phetjeeja at ONE Fight Night 20

ONE Women’s Atomweight Kickboxing World Champion Janet Todd has had time to reflect on her latest outing in ONE Championship, and she’s ready to put what she learned from it to good use in her return to action. This Friday, March 8, “JT” will take on interim titleholder Phetjeeja Lukjaoporongtom to unify the divisional crowns in the main event of ONE Fight Night 20 inside the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. 

Todd last competed at ONE Fight Night 8 in March 2023, where she squared off against returning star Allycia Hellen Rodrigues in an attempt to drop her interim tag and become the undisputed ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Champion.

Janet Todd’s recent failure

Unfortunately, she was unable to overcome her Brazilian foe across five rounds of intense action. Now a year removed from that unanimous decision loss, the American star outlined how it has helped her preparation for Friday’s match in an interview with FightWave. 

“I took away a lot from my last fight. I realized I put a little bit too much pressure on myself to get the belt and I took the fun out of it. When you put too much pressure on yourself, there’s always a fine line,” Todd said. “I think this time, I changed sort of my mentality going into this fight. It’s about me just having fun, being able to express myself, and just doing what I do best. It’s a different mentality that I’m approaching this fight with.”

It will be crucial for her to be at her best against Phetjeeja, who is riding a five-fight win streak in ONE Championship that includes four knockouts. But can she replicate her feat against Phetjeeja at ONE Fight Night 20 as well?

Winning the interim belt

In her latest masterclass performance, at ONE Friday Fights 46 in December, the Thai dynamo claimed the ONE Interim Atomweight Women’s Kickboxing World Championship at the expense of striking legend Anissa Meksen.  But, at 38, Todd has overcome many significant challenges in her illustrious amateur and professional career.

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So her vast experience will, undoubtedly, play to her advantage when she steps into action against Phetjeeja this Friday. ONE Fight Night 20 goes down live on US primetime and will be broadcast for free on Prime Video for Amazon subscribers across North America.  

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