A Look At The Close Friendship Between Nong-O And Superbon Before They Compete At ONE Friday Fights 58
This Friday, April 5, former featherweight kickboxing king Superbon Singha Mawynn will battle longtime rival Marat Grigorian for the ONE Interim Featherweight Kickboxing World Title in the main event of ONE Friday Fights 58.
Just two fights before that, former longtime ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion Nong-O Hama will take on knockout artist “Left Meteorite” Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek Uthai as he looks to prove there is still gas left in the tank.
Both bouts will go down in Asia primetime with the Thai megastars competing in front of a home crowd at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok.
Over the past two years, the pound-for-pound greats have trained together and developed a unique bond.
They first met in Singapore in 2022 when they shared the same card at ONE X, but their friendship flourished when Nong-O returned to his native Thailand.
Since then, they’ve been practically inseparable, spending time together inside and outside of the gym. Superbon told onefc.com:
“We eat together almost every day and travel together a lot. Nong-O’s wife is such a great cook, so I come to eat with them every day.”
As close friends do, Nong-O says he feels comfortable poking fun at Superbon and his clean-cut, good looks.
The 37-year-old Muay Thai legend said:
“Superbon is a good-looking person, so he’s always attracting the girls. I sometimes tease him by calling him ‘Mr. Chad,’ and he laughs.”
Beyond the playful banter, Superbon and Nong-O share a great deal of respect for each other as athletes. Even with more than 450 combined fights between them, they both admit to admiring the other.
Nong-O is impressed by his friend’s ability to learn and constantly improve, even after reaching the top of the kickboxing world:
“Superbon is always striving to be better. This man is like a sponge. He’ll absorb knowledge and techniques from the best fighters and apply them to his game.”
For his part, 33-year-old Superbon lives up to his reputation as a “sponge” and says he’s blown away by Nong-O’s dedication to his craft after so many years of competing at the highest level.
He explained:
“I have learned a lot from Nong-O. He has a lot of good skills, whether it’s his powerful kicks or his physical conditioning. Even though he’s 37 years old, he’s still diligent in training, very disciplined, and he is a fighter with a ton of fighting spirit.”
Superbon And Nong-O Predict Each Other’s Results At ONE Friday Fights 58
Given their tight-knit relationship, it’s no surprise that both Superbon Singha Mawynn and Nong-O Hama will be cheering for each other at ONE Friday Fights 58.
Nong-O will take to the ring first against Kulabdam. After reeling off 10 straight victories to begin his ONE tenure and establishing himself as perhaps the planet’s greatest Muay Thai athlete, the veteran has dropped two in a row.
Superbon, though, is confident that the former bantamweight Muay Thai kingpin will get back on track thanks to his work ethic and discipline:
“I think Nong-O will win by decision or KO because he has a lot more experience, skills, technique, weapons, and power than Kulabdam.
“Nong-O works hard every day. He works in the morning and even every day without slacking. I still slack sometimes.”
In the main event, Superbon will look to claim the ONE Interim Featherweight Kickboxing World Title and score his second straight win over Armenian star Marat Grigorian.
A student of the game and an ardent supporter of his friend, Nong-O thinks Superbon will be able to maintain distance and fire off his trademark head kick against the hard-hitting Grigorian:
“Of course, I’m rooting for Superbon. I think Marat Grigorian cannot close the distance on Superbon easily. He may be the latest victim to be knocked out by Superbon’s high kick. Or if this fight goes the distance, Superbon will win by unanimous decision.”
