For the first time in her professional career, French striking superstar Anissa “C18” Meksen is set to compete in a discipline other than kickboxing and Muay Thai. At ONE Fight Night 6: Superbon vs. Allazov on Prime Video, on January 13, she will participate in a mixed-rules clash against Stamp Fairtex.
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The super-fight will alternate between Muay Thai and MMA rule sets, and though a large portion of the martial arts community feels that Stamp will hold the advantage in the second and fourth rounds, Meksen begs to differ.
Anissa Meksen was battle ready after some initial difficulty in changing her style
In a recent interview with ONE, the multiple-time World Champion revealed that she has indeed got the ball rolling in regards to her training in the all-encompassing sport.
“I trained in MMA in 2017, and after that, I trained in MMA for three years. Now, I just came back, and my skills feel good,” Meksen said. “It was a little bit difficult to come back, but now I feel better, and I feel comfortable.”
The equation to defeat Stamp might not be as straightforward as Meksen hopes, though. The former ONE Atomweight Muay Thai and Kickboxing queen has risen to the top of the atomweight MMA ranks, submitted wrestling specialist Ritu “The Indian Tigress” to claim the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Grand Prix Championship, and competed for the World Title against “Unstoppable” Angela Lee.
As a result, it’s pretty clear that Stamp has the skills to dominate the bout, should it make it out of the opening Muay Thai round.
Anissa Meksen went for intense grappling training along with striking practice
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But to counter those shortcomings, Meksen has gone the extra mile during her training sessions at Phuket Fight Club. Her training camp has been filled with just as much grappling as striking. And she admits that her previous training in MMA and Judo has eased her transition ahead of the epic contest.
“I did judo for six years. Nobody knows that. But I have experience in judo, and I work a lot on my wrestling. I’m ready for everything,” Meksen warned. “I trained hard in wrestling and in grappling. I have a good team. It doesn’t matter what happens. I will be ready for sure.”
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