Phetjeeja OrMeekhun Unifies 115-Pound Kickboxing Title at ONE Fight Night 20

Thai star Phetjeeja OrMeekhun unified the ONE Championship atomweight kickboxing title with a five-round unanimous decision win over Janet Todd in the ONE Fight Night 20 main event at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok.

Phetjeeja and Todd headlined a nine-fight, all-female card to celebrate International Women’s Day and left it all in the ring. Todd, who entered as the reigning champion, hadn’t fought in over a year, while Phetjeeja, the interim champion, stayed busy with five wins during that span.

Phetjeeja’s activity showed early as the 22-year-old’s timing led the way. Todd looked to lead and land hard, but Phetjeeja made it difficult with her movement and counters. Todd found success in close range but didn’t have an answer on the outside.

The fight remained competitive throughout all five rounds, until Phetjeeja put the definitive cap on her performance with a knockdown in the final 40 seconds. Todd hopped up immediately, but she knew she was beat. Following the decision, the 38-year-old former champion confirmed her heartfelt retirement from fighting.

In the co-main event, atomweight muay thai champion Allycia Hellen Rodrigues retained her belt against Spain’s Cristina Morales. Morales pushed the pace early and arguably won the first two rounds.

As Rodrigues settled into the fight, the Brazilian’s body work wore down the challenger. Morales kept her guard high and exposed herself to attacks on the liver. Rodrigues either led or finished nearly every combination with a body shot and backed Morales up.

Rodrigues nearly put Morales away in the fourth round after landing a thudding left hook under the ribs. Morales retreated and rode out the storm until the fifth frame, where she fought her hardest since the bout's opening minutes. Morales’ strong start and finish weren’t enough, however, as Rodrigues’ dominance through the middle of the fight helped her retain by unanimous decision.

With the win, Rodrigues bounced back from her loss to strawweight muay thai queen Smilla Sundell. Riding the momentum, the champion called out three-sport star Stamp Fairtex to a muay thai championship showdown.

Former strawweight muay thai title challenger Jackie Buntan stayed on the path to another title shot with a unanimous decision win over Italy’s Martine Michieletto. Buntan and Michieletto slugged it out for three rounds, but Bunton’s power bloodied and backed up the taller woman. Heading into the third round, presumably tied on the cards, Bunton’s power and forward pressure backed Michieletto back to the ropes and left a lasting impact on the judges.

Unbeaten prospect Chihiro Sawada picked up the biggest win of her career against Jihin Radzuan. Radzuan had her moments throughout the fight and nearly closed the show early with a triangle choke in the opening period. Once Sawada escaped, she did everything in her power to sway the judges back to her side. Sawada threw heavy combinations, charged forward and finished her double-leg attempts. By outworking the more experienced foe for long stretches, Sawada (7-0-1) stayed in the win column.

Ekaterina Vandaryeva entered her strawweight muay thai showdown with unbeaten Polish sensation Martyna Kierczynska looking to snap a four-fight skid. Kierczynska was confident after a second-round knockout over Nat Jaroonsak, but the more experienced Vandaryeva flustered her.

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Vandaryeva slowed the aggressive prospect in the clinch before dropping her with a short right-hand counter in the second. Kierczynska walked forward but couldn’t trap the 33-year-old and lost her first professional bout by unanimous decision.

Yu Yau Pui announced herself on the big stage with a win over WBC flyweight muay thai champion Lara Fernandez in a 118.5-pound catchweight bout. Pui put on a hellacious pace that put the champion on her backfoot all night.

Fernandez fought valiantly, and her punches swelled her foe's eyes and forehead. Pui was unfazed by the power, however, and wore down Fernandez with her foot on the gas and routinely got the best of her in exchanges. The three-round barnburner was one of the card's highlights, as a new potential star emerged.

Noelle Grandjean (5-1) bounced back from her first career loss by dominating Brazil’s Victoria Souza en route to a unanimous decision win. Grandjean dropped Souza early and nearly forced referee Herb Dean to stop the fight, but Souza held on to see the second round. Souza’s (7-2) toughness was on display, but she was beaten to the punch often and overpowered on the ground. With the victory, Granjean snapped Souza’s two-fight win streak.

Mayssa Bastos is one of the most dominant grapplers in jiu-jitsu, but she met her match against Japan’s Kanae Yamada. Bastos looked to counter the aggressive Yamada throughout their 10-minute atomweight submission grappling match but couldn’t find a deep hold. Threatening Yamada’s legs and taking her back, however, helped sway the judges and win a unanimous decision.

With the win, Bastos — the 2023 International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation roosterweight champ — has won her last 27 of 28 matches.

Israel’s Shir Cohen kicked off the card with a second-round TKO finish over Bulgaria’s Teodora Kirilova. Kiralova tried to establish her teep and use height and reach to keep Cohen at bay, but the ONE debutant walked her down with overhand rights.

Once Cohen opened a cut above Kiralova’s right eye, the 23-year-old stalked her to the ropes and staggered her with another crushing right. With Kiralova's legs gone, Cohen only needed 2:27 of the second round before referee Olivier Coste ended the beating.