Onward and Upward

A journey that started with pre-teen training in capoeira has brought Allycia Hellen Rodrigues to success and stardom in ONE Championship.

The 25-year-old Brazilian will defend her women’s atomweight muay thai championship opposite Cristina Morales in the ONE on Prime Video 20 co-main event this Friday at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. It marks Rodrigues’ first appearance since she failed in her bid to become a two-division titleholder in a technical knockout loss to Swedish wunderkind Smilla Sundell in September. Win, lose or draw, she tries to take the same approach to every assignment.

“Every fight is important to me,” Rodrigues told Sherdog.com. “They bring both knowledge and evolution.”

Martinez represents the Team Jesus Cabello camp out of Spain. The 30-year-old owns a 1-1 record as a member of the ONE roster, having followed a September 2021 technical knockout loss to Anissa Meksen with a first-round stoppage of Anna Jaroonsak on Nov. 3. Rodrigues believes she holds the edge in terms of tactical experience.

“I haven’t watched too many of her fights,” she said. “We don’t have the habit of watching my opponents’ videos. I simply do my work in training, so I’m ready come fight time. She’s a kickboxer, but we’re fighting muay thai. I strongly believe in my muay thai game. It’s what I’ve been training my entire life. I know she’s a good striker, but in muay thai, we have a clinch game and I make good use of my elbows and knees. That’s what I’ll do. I expect to be the superior fighter in muay thai.”

Rodrigues continues to train out of the Phuket Fight Club in Thailand, thousands of miles from her homeland. There, she sharpens her skills under a host of world-class coaches and alongside a number of top-flight stablemates.

“The training is very intense,” Rodrigues said. “It’s an entire month with no breaks, training twice and sometimes three times a day. I have several training partners who compete at Lumpinee and various promotions in Bangkok. I’m always very well prepared. I feel strong before each fight. This time won’t be any different.”

After her looming battle with Martinez, Rodrigues wants to strengthen her hold over the 115-pound weight class. She also has plans to eventually test the waters in other disciplines.

“I’d like to continue to defend my belt and then move to MMA,” she said. “I’d love to debut in MMA this year, but it won’t be possible. I want to have a good debut, so I need more time to improve my ground game.”