‘I’m Not Alone’ – How A Powerful Support System Is Fueling The Rise Of Muay Thai Phenom Nabil Anane
ONE Interim Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion Nabil Anane has a strong group of people behind him as he prepares to rematch reigning World Champion “The Kicking Machine” Superlek Kiatmoo9 in a high-stakes World Title unification clash at ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang.
That highly anticipated contest will take place on March 23 at the legendary Saitama Super Arena in Japan, live on pay-per-view.
For Anane, it will be his chance to avenge a 2023 loss to Superlek, elevate himself to an undisputed ONE World Champion, and make his close-knit support system prouder than ever.
Still just 20 years old, the Thai-Algerian phenom displays humility well beyond his years.
He recently spoke to onefc.com about how thankful he is for the unending support, time, and effort his team has put into his remarkable ascent:
“Muay Thai is an individual sport. You can be alone. But me, I’m not alone, and that’s an advantage. I’ve got people pushing me. I’m very young, and they are guiding me to the right way. I’m very, very grateful. I thank them a lot.”
At the center of Anane’s support system are his father and mother.
After he claimed the interim belt with a stunning first-round knockout of Nico Carrillo, the young striker placed the 26 pounds of gold on his father’s shoulder – a small gesture to thank him for the sacrifices he made to see his son achieve his dreams.
Although his mother wasn’t in the Circle with them to celebrate, Anane said she has also played an irreplaceable role over the course of his Muay Thai journey:
“You know, if I didn’t have my dad, I wouldn’t have this [belt]. No, I wouldn’t have this belt. He is the one who put me in martial arts. He is the one who brings me to train every day. Since I was a very young kid, he brought me into this world, and everything that I have today is because of him.
“Also, my mom, she always pushes me. She is always behind the scenes, cooking for me every time. Whatever I need, I tell her, and she always cooks. She supports. She was always behind me, same as my dad. They both brought me into this world.”
Anane is driven to succeed partly for his own individual reasons – for fame and acclaim along with the right to call himself the planet’s best bantamweight Muay Thai fighter.
However, his motivation runs deeper than that. He’s never lost sight of all that his parents have done for him, and with that in mind, his ultimate goal is to fill them with pride.
“My parents, they do really support me a lot, and I’m doing my best to make them proud. I love them a lot. And I know they do love me a lot, too. And my biggest dream is to make them proud of me. And now they are, but I want them to be even more proud.”
Anane Praises Coach Mehdi Zatout: ‘He’s Like My Big Brother’
Beyond his two parents, Nabil Anane says there’s another figure who has been instrumental in his success on the global stage.
Anane began working with former ONE superstar and now world-renowned striking coach Mehdi Zatout when he was just a child and has stuck with him ever since:
“Mehdi is like my big brother. When I first met him, I was like 10 years old. I was smaller than him, and now I’m very much bigger than him. He is the first one who held pads for me, and he’s like my big brother.”
As a proud representative of Team Mehdi Zatout, Anane has developed a unique relationship with his longtime coach.
Even when he’s fighting in massive arenas – like he will on March 23 at Saitama Super Arena – Anane can always pick out Zatout’s voice from the crowd.
Those words of advice, both before and during the fight, have given him the confidence needed to defeat the world’s best strikers in ONE:
“Even if the arena is so loud you cannot hear anything, you can still hear your coach’s instructions.
“Mehdi brought me to ONE Championship. He taught me a lot of things. All those techniques, all of the stuff that I’ve done in ONE, it’s because of him.”
