Martin Nguyen Ready To Show His Division Why He Is Still Top Dog

ONE Featherweight World Champion Martin “The Situ-Asian” Nguyen has finally recovered from injury, and now he is ready to defend his coveted belt against his martial arts idol.

The Vietnamese-Australian is scheduled for a main-event clash with former titleholder Narantungalag “Tungaa” Jadambaa at ONE: ROOTS OF HONOR, which emanates from the Mall Of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines on Friday, 12 April.

“I look up to Jadambaa. He is a complete martial artist,” the 30-year-old says. “I love his fighting style and will definitely enjoy every minute in [the cage] with him.”

For the past year and a half, Nguyen has been on a quest to collect as many ONE World Titles as possible.

In November 2017, just three months after claiming the ONE Featherweight World Championship, “The Situ-Asian” moved up a weight class and knocked out Eduard “Landslide” Folayang to capture the lightweight belt. By doing so, he also became the first two-division ONE World Champion in the promotion’s history.

He nearly added the bantamweight gold to his trophy case on two occasions last year, but narrowly fell short in his bid to become a record-setting three-division ONE World Champion.

The constant shifts in weight classes could have been seen as a hindrance to Nguyen’s overall success, but he would not change anything about the choices he made for his career.

“It was the best learning experience I could have asked for. Sharing the cage with other dominant World Champions made me realize the potential I carried,” he explains.

“Although it didn’t go to plan [trying to win] that third World Title, it will definitely be something I must avenge.”

Nguyen sustained quite a few injuries, too.

He suffered a foot injury in his bout with Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon in July 2018. Then during a wrestling session soon after, he strained his ACL and tore both his PCL and MCL.

That led to him vacating the ONE Lightweight World Championship in September.

While he relinquished the lightweight gold, “The Situ-Asian” held on to the featherweight belt and has refocused his efforts to prove that he is the world’s best mixed martial artist in his natural weight class.

“I have been dealing with some serious issues, which have now been rectified,” he states. “I feel fit and strong again, and cannot wait to perform.”

Now healthy, Nguyen returns to make his second ONE Featherweight World Title defense next month, and he has drawn one of his most difficult assignments yet.

Jadambaa is a strong grappler who also has top-class kickboxing skills and packs immense knockout power in his strikes.

A former ONE Featherweight World Champion himself, the Mongolian legend is riding a two-bout win streak and has defeated four of his last five opponents including Kazuki Tokudome, Kotetsu Boku, and Edward Kelly.

The Vietnamese-Australian has always kept a close eye on “Tungaa,” so he is aware of the danger Jadambaa brings to the cage.

“Not only does every fighter have their weaknesses, but I think every fighter fights a different fight every bout,” the reigning World Champion says. “It’s up to me to adapt and impose my will against the challengers.”

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Nguyen points towards “youth and athleticism” as his two greatest allies when going up against the 43-year-old veteran, and he is preparing for this colossal showdown alongside two-division ONE World Champion Aung La “The Burmese Python” N Sang at Hard Knocks 365 in Florida, USA.

Although it has been nine months since “The Situ-Asian” last competed, he is excited to make his return and wanted nothing less than to face the toughest possible opponent available.

“Regardless of how long it’s been, I always come to do my best in cementing my legacy,” he says.

“Every bout I’ve had in my career has been against tough fighters. [There have been] no stepping stones or warm up fights. I’ve done everything right my whole career.

“This bout will put the whole division on their toes. Everyone will be tuning in as you will see two of the best go at it.”