ONE Championship held a virtual press conference this week, ahead of its ONE Lumpinee 34 card today, and there were plenty of takeaways.
The blockbuster card goes down today at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok and is headlined by the showdown between ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon and divisional kickboxing king Superlek Kiatmoo9.
The pair will finally clash with Rodtang's belt on the line.
Historic fight
ONE chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong was clear that the significance of the main event could not be overstated.
He declared that Rodtang v Superlek is one of the biggest fights in the history of Muay Thai.
"There is huge significance because when you had a huge fight 30, 40 years ago, Muay Thai was a very small martial art, only restricted to Thailand. Very, very few people even knew about Muay Thai outside of Thailand," he said.
"Today, not only do we have Rodtang and Superlek, the biggest fight in 50 years that everyone in the Muay Thai community wants to see in Thailand, actually the entire country wants to see, but also we now have a truly global broadcast [with] live reach into over 190 countries around the world with ONE. ONE obviously has a brand around the world and huge fans.
"This will be the most-watched Muay Thai event in history on the planet, but also the most-watched [Muay Thai] fight in history on the planet.
"So, from the perspective of Thailand, from the perspective of Muay Thai, this is literally the biggest moment in the history of the country when it relates to sports."
The Iron Man
Rodtang raised some eyebrows following his crushing victory over Edgar Tabares in May.
After the fight, he confessed that he hadn't put in a full training camp for the fight at ONE's United States debut.
The questions were inevitably asked about his preparation for what is likely the biggest fight of his career, but "The Iron Man" reassured fans that the significance of the upcoming fight is not lost on him.
"I am a world champion, and I have discipline and I know what I am doing. I know myself, whether I am training a lot or not," he said.
"I plan to give this my all. Throughout my fighting career, I have never backed out from any fight, and I always last until the end of the round.
"I want to make everybody proud in this fight, so don't worry, this fight is going to be really fun."
Kicking Machine
Superlek has a shot at history today, as a victory would not only make him a two-sport world champion, but it would also cement his status as the very best flyweight striker on the planet.
It won't be a walk in the park for "The Kicking Machine," however.
He declared that Rodtang will be the toughest test of his 164-fight professional career.
"Rodtang is the best of the best in this weight class right now, and he is the champion. So, fighting him in this weight class is the toughest [fight of my career]," he said.
"Somebody will be knocked out in this fight. I know that Rodtang is one of the most durable fighters in the world, so it depends on me too. There might be an opportunity to get a knockout, but it's not going to be easy."
ONE Lumpinee 34 will broadcast on Channel 7 starting at 8.30pm.