Title Turmoil: Superlek Stripped of Bantamweight Muay Thai Championship Ahead of ONE 172
Superlek is no longer the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world champion.
Hours away from a highly anticipated title unification clash with interim titleholder Nabil Anane at ONE 172 in Japan, Superlek failed to meet the hydration requirements, resulting in him being stripped of his title.
No official announcements have been made as of this writing, but the bout is expected to move forward as scheduled. Unfortunately, Superlek will no longer be eligible to leave Saitama Super Arena with a belt, even if he wins.
Anane, on the other hand, met both weight and hydration requirements for the bantamweight rematch, meaning if he wins, he will become the undisputed king of the bantamweight Muay Thai division.
Superlek is just the latest in a string of fighters who have lost their titles on the scale
It’s an unfortunate turn of events and one that has plagued ONE Championship over the last year. Around this same time last year, Jonathan Di Bella lost his ONE strawweight kickboxing crown after failing to weigh in for a title defense against Prajanchai at ONE Friday Fights 58.
Then in November, Rodtang Jitmuangnon was stripped of his ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title after failing to make weight for a rematch with Jacob Smith.
Luckily, the competitors in four other title fights scheduled for ONE 172 all made weight and hydration, including Adriano Moraes vs. Yuya Wakamatsu for the ONE flyweight MMA world championship and a showdown between Phetjeeja and former K-1 queen Kana Morimoto who will go toe-to-toe for the ONE atomweight kickboxing world title.
Both Rodtang and Takeru made weight and hydration for their highly anticipated flyweight kickboxing superfight.
Check out the full ONE 172 lineup below:
ONE 172 will air live on global pay-per-view with watch.onefc.com. If you order the event more than 24 hours ahead of fight night, you can get the full 14-fight card for just $35. After that, it’ll be $40.
With the event emanating from Japan, it’ll be a late start time, or early depending on your perspective, for fans in the United States. ONE 172 kicks off at 3 a.m. ET, 7 a.m. GMT, and 2 p.m. ICT. Check here for more details on when the event starts in your neck of the woods.
