‘More Agile, Faster, And Fitter’ – Nong-O Feels Revitalized Ahead Of Flyweight Debut Against Kongthoranee

Legendary Thai striker Nong-O Hama plans to unveil a new and improved version of himself at ONE Fight Night 28: Prajanchai vs. Barboza on Prime Video.
This Friday in U.S. primetime, the former long-reigning ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion will make his flyweight debut when he squares off with #4-ranked divisional contender Kongthoranee Sor Sommai at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok.
For Nong-O, the fight represents his chance to begin a climb toward gold in a new division. With the flyweight Muay Thai throne currently sitting vacant, he knows a win over Kongthoranee would be massive for his World Title aspirations.
Accordingly, the 38-year-old veteran isn’t taking his move down to flyweight lightly.
He told onefc.com that he’s spent the past few months gradually shedding weight while making sure he’s ready to compete against the best 135-pound Muay Thai fighters on the planet:
“I’ve been preparing for this fight for about three months. I knew that I had to lose weight, so I tried to control my diet and tried to train so that my body could fight properly at this weight.
“There shouldn’t be any problems in terms of my physical condition or stamina. I’ll definitely go all-out because I’ve been preparing for this for a long time.”
After enjoying a dominant 10-fight, five-year winning streak to begin his ONE tenure, Nong-O has gone 1-3 across his last four appearances, losing his bantamweight Muay Thai belt and hearing retirement talk from some fans.
He believes the change in weight class could be just the trick to help him bounce back – and he’s already seeing drastic improvements to his overall conditioning:
“Since I’ve reduced my weight to fight in the 135-pound division, I think I look more agile, faster, and fitter.”
Nong-O has spent the past decade of his illustrious career competing at 145 pounds, typically against larger, more powerful opposition.
He said those experiences throwing down with some of the sport’s heaviest hitters will serve him well at flyweight, where he should appear even stronger:
“Coming down to this division, the power will be even more. I may not have much of an advantage, but I have fought some big guys before. So, I take it as my advantage.”
Nong-O Details His Advantages Over Kongthoranee
While he’s made some serious physical improvements amid his move down to flyweight, Nong-O Hama has an incredibly difficult task ahead of him at ONE Fight Night 28. After all, Kongthoranee Sor Sommai is 10 years his junior, owns a 10-2 record in ONE, and is a true master technician.
For his part, Nong-O sees a couple of key advantages for himself in this pivotal matchup:
“His strengths are his speed, youth, and good timing. And he is confident in himself, but I will not be careless.
“Don’t forget that I have experience fighting some big guys at bantamweight. So I don’t think I’m at a disadvantage in terms of power. And another advantage for me is that I have more experience in ONE than him.”
Ultimately, the veteran superstar is happy to have been given a stiff test and a top-five ranked contender for his flyweight debut.
A win over #4-ranked Kongthoranee would immediately catapult Nong-O into the flyweight Muay Thai division’s rankings and could put him in position to challenge for the gold sooner rather than later:
“It’s good that ONE sent a ranked fighter to fight me. It gives me a chance to get closer to the World Title shot. If I win against Kongthoranee, I should be able to enter the rankings.”