Preview: One Championship 'Kingdom of Heroes'

Kai Ting Chuang (17-5-0) vs. Stamp Fairtex (60-15-5)
ONE Super Series Kickboxing Atomweight Championship

Kai Ting Chuang upset the bookies when she defeated Thailand’s muay Thai prodigy Yodcherry Sityodtong to claim the inaugural ONE kickboxing atomweight title back in July at ONE: Battle for the Heavens. The 23-year-old’s aggressive game plan did not allow Yodcherry time to settle into her rhythm and after five rounds of action, the judges called the fight in her favor.

Chuang now finds herself in a similar position as she prepares to take on another experienced muay Thai wunderkind from Thailand for her first title defense. Stamp Fairtex made her name known to ONE’s scouts when she appeared on Rich Franklin’s ONE Warrior series. ONE Warrior Series is a reality show which doubles as a feeder system for the ONE roster. The 20-year-old Stamp was looking to fight for the promotion as an MMA fighter, but after winning her ONE Warrior series bout in 19 seconds with a devastating head kick, she was offered the chance to compete in the Super Series. Going into this weekend’s contest Chuang’s strength lies in her boxing, and the speed at which she delivers her punches, as well as the fact that she is a kickboxer as opposed to a muay Thai fighter, turned kickboxer.

Stamp will need to ensure she does not make the mistake that Yodcherry made and let Chuang dictate the pace of the bout. Stamp delivers enough power in her strikes to win via stoppage but will need to ensure that she does not allow Chuang the opportunity to continually close the distance if she wants to implement her superior kicking game.

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