“You Can’t Underestimate Him” – Tawanchai Believes Victory Won’t Come Easy Against Jamal Yusupov

Tawanchai PK.Saenchai may be riding an impressive streak of victories against some of the best strikers on the planet, but the ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Champion is refusing to walk into his first World Title defense feeling overly confident. 

The 23-year-old puts his gold on the line against Jamal “Yeniciri” Yusupov in the co-main event of ONE Fight Night 7: Lineker vs. Andrade II on Prime Video on Friday, February 24, which goes down inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Tawanchai PK.Saenchai lauds his hugely experienced opponent Jamal Yusupov

While he’s undoubtedly fired up to compete in one of the most iconic venues in the Muay Thai world, the divisional king admits he will be on his guard throughout the scheduled five-round affair.

“[Yusupov’s] strength is heavy, strong punches. He hardly has any weaknesses. He’s one of the strongest fighters. You can’t underestimate him in any way,” the PK.Saenchai athlete said.

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Yusupov is a three-time Russian Kickboxing Champion. And, at 37 years old, he’ll bring a wealth of experience to the Circle when he meets 23-year-old Tawanchai. But the Thai athlete, ONE’s 2022 Muay Thai Fighter of the Year, doesn’t necessarily believe this will cause him many problems when they meet. After all, the defending World Champion already owns 128 career victories – compared to Yusupov’s 63-fight resume.

Tawanchai PK.Saenchai will need to be at his best for a victory

“Of course, he has extensive fighting experiences, but they’re not superior to mine,” he added. Yusupov has posted three highly-impressive wins in his ONE tenure – against multiple-time World Champions Yodsanklai Fairtex, Samy Sana, and Jo Nattawut.

Those fighters are far from a walk in the park, so Tawanchai feels he may need to dig deep if he wants to leave the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium with a successful World Title defense under his belt.

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“The key in this fight is my inner fire. I’m hungry for the victory. I’ll never give up on anything easily,” he said.