Former ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Champion Superbon Singha Mawynn is determined to win back the 26 pounds of gold he lost earlier this year, and the Thai superstar’s climb back to the top begins with the division’s #5-ranked contender, Tayfun “Turbine” Ozcan.
The two strikers are set to throw down in a pivotal contest at ONE Fight Night 11: Eersel vs. Menshikov on Prime Video, which broadcasts live in U.S. primetime from the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, June 9.
The high-stakes encounter comes five months after Chingiz Allazov knocked out Superbon in the main event of ONE Fight Night 6, marking the Thai superstar’s first defeat in ONE Championship.
Now, after taking some time to reflect on his performance, the 32-year-old looks back on that fateful night with a humble mindset and uses it as a tool for improvement.
He told ONEFC.com:
“Athletes can lose. But when you lose, you must recover yourself and get back to fighting as quickly as possible. And, it is an important responsibility to prove that you can do better next time.”
(@superbon_banchamek)One of the biggest lessons Superbon learned was that he must perform his due diligence, something he neglected to do ahead of the World Title clash with Allazov.
For instance, the Thai athlete typically competes in the evening, but that wasn’t the case at ONE Fight Night 6. With a U.S. primetime audience watching live in North America, he fought in the morning on the other side of the world at Bangkok’s Impact Arena, and Superbon’s failure to adjust his body clock played a role in the loss.
He said:
“I didn’t adjust to the time. Also, I hardly slept the night before. Of course, I didn’t feel refreshed. I was so worried if I would perform well because I didn’t get enough sleep.”
In a further step of humility, the former titleholder confesses that he became too comfortable with his own success.
After going undefeated for years and establishing himself as the planet’s top pound-for-pound striker, Superbon may have dismissed just how dangerous Allazov was.
The Thai explained:
“Another factor is that I might have underestimated my opponent a bit. His game plan was better than expected. I must give credit to his good preparation. And, you know, I haven’t lost in the past [five] years. It made me overlook my own weaknesses. But when I lost, I watched the replay and I could really see my weaknesses. That was my mistake.”
Superbon Targets World Title Bout With Win Over Tayfun Ozcan
If he wants to reclaim the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Title, Superbon Singha Mawynn will have to get past Tayfun Ozcan first.
As the division’s #1-ranked contender, the Thai already holds wins over every other athlete in the top five. So, if he were to beat “Turbine” at ONE Fight Night 11, it could theoretically lead to a second encounter with “Chinga.”
Superbon explained:
“Tayfun Ozcan is the only contender in the rankings who I have never fought. And I must beat him if I want to clean out everyone in the rankings and get a rematch with Chingiz Allazov.”
But even if Superbon were to receive another World Title shot, he’d have to wait a little while. Currently, Allazov is slated to defend the featherweight kickboxing crown against Marat Grigorian at ONE Fight Night 13 in August.
For the Singha Mawynn Muay Thai representative, it doesn’t necessarily matter who wins that match. The Thai just wants to redeem himself and earn another crack at the gold. And while Ozcan has suffered some heartbreaking defeats recently, including to Grigorian, another devastating loss could put Superbon’s goals out of reach.
He said:
“I think I’m hungrier than Ozcan because I lost more painfully. I lost on my turf and got KO’ed before I had a chance to show what I practiced. I have more motivation than him this time.
“I want to take back the belt and defeat everyone in the rankings. And the most important thing is that I can’t lose again. It’s a point of no return for me. If I lose, everything I’ve done until now will fall apart in the blink of an eye.”
