Rodtang stunned by 40-year-old Nong-O at Lumpinee

Rodtang Jitmuangnon was beaten by unanimous decision by 40-year-old Nong-O Hama in the ONE Championship flyweight Muay Thai Grand Prix quarter-final at Bangkok's Lumpinee Stadium on Friday night, 13 November. Nong-O, a 7-2 outsider, dropped the former champion with a second-round head kick and now meets Japan's Shimon Yoshinari in the semi-finals.

It was one of the most anticipated bouts on ONE's The Inner Circle 38 card. Nong-O had turned 40 just three days earlier, and he told the Bangkok Post: "Everyone did not believe I could win, but I believed in myself."

How Rodtang was beaten

Nong-O spent the first round kicking at Rodtang's ribs, while the younger man kept walking forward and digging to the body whenever he got close.

The second round turned the fight. Nong-O caught Rodtang coming in with an elbow that opened a cut above his eyebrow. Then, with Rodtang bracing for another body kick, Nong-O lifted his left leg and sent the kick over the guard and onto the neck. Rodtang went down hard.

"I admit I didn't think Rodtang would get back up," Nong-O said, in remarks reported by Khaosod. Rodtang beat the count and charged back, even landing a counter when Nong-O went looking for the finish.

In the third round, Nong-O let the aggressive Rodtang do the chasing. He tied him up in the clinch to run down the clock and twice dragged him to the canvas. "There was no reason for me to come in and exchange the punches," he said. The judges gave him a unanimous decision.

A plan a year in the making

The two were first booked to meet for the vacant flyweight belt at ONE 173 in Tokyo a year ago, but that fight fell through after Rodtang fell ill after weighing in and Nong-O missed weight. Nong-O said he had been working on how to handle Rodtang's pressure ever since, and brought the same plan to Lumpinee.

In his corner were two close friends and training partners, ONE featherweight kickboxing champion Superbon and former bantamweight kickboxing champion Petchtanong Petchfergus.

Doubts before the fight

Few gave the veteran much chance. ONE chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong had tentatively picked Rodtang to reach the final against reigning flyweight champion Asadula Imangazaliev. Before the bout, Chatri even said Nong-O might retire if he was knocked out badly.

Rodtang, 11 years younger, had spent nearly two months in camp this time. His preparations for April's kickboxing rematch with Takeru Segawa were disrupted by a contract dispute, and he was knocked down four times and stopped in the fifth round that night. Our Rodtang vs Nong-O preview covered his camp in the build-up.

What comes next in the Grand Prix

Nong-O faces Shimon Yoshinari, who outclassed Ramadan Ondash by unanimous decision in the opener of ONE Friday Fights 178 on the same night. The two faced off in the ring at Lumpinee afterwards. "Shimon is very good, very tough," Nong-O said, adding that Yoshinari's height would give him something to work on in camp.

The remaining path to the title looks like this:

• Imangazaliev defends his belt against Aslamjon Ortikov at The Inner Circle 39 on 20 November.
• Black Panther meets Ubaid Hussain in the last quarter-final on the same card.
• The final will put both the flyweight world title and a silver Grand Prix belt on the line.

A run to the final could give Nong-O a rematch with Imangazaliev, who knocked him out in the second round in March.

A remarkable career

Nong-O defended ONE's bantamweight Muay Thai title seven times before Jonathan Haggerty stopped him in 2023. He bounced back from the March loss by outpointing Kongthoranee Sor Sommai in June to settle their trilogy, and Friday's win makes it two in a row.

Asked about retirement, he said he started fighting at 10 and will decide for himself when to stop. "Nobody pushed me to fight. I just fight because I like to fight," he said. His son, Nong-O Junior, made his stadium debut this summer at 12.

For readers in Phuket, where many camps train fighters for Lumpinee and ONE cards, our guide to Muay Thai in Phuket explains where to train and watch live fights on the island.

Image: Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, where Rodtang lost to Nong-O. Photo by Mr.Sayompoo Setabhrahmana via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.