Former ONE Strawweight World Champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke is on his way back to the ONE Championship cage.
The 39-year-old veteran is set to make his return after a seven-month absence at ONE: HEART OF THE LION in Singapore when he takes on Himanshu Kaushik in a strawweight mixed martial arts contest.
“Kru Rong” says his time away from the cage has recharged his batteries and he will come back better than ever.
“I wanted to give myself some time to rest my body and recover – to slowly get back in shape and make sure I’m fight-ready,” says the 39-year-old.
“I am 110 percent ready for my bout. I’m very excited to come back and fight again, and excited to get in the cage.
“This one is a little bit special because I’m very happy to be competing in Singapore once again, in front of all my students from Evolve, and especially since I consider Singapore a second home.”
Dejdamrong may not have been in active competition, but he has still been working in the gym, honing his skills and improving his all-around mixed martial arts game.
“I have worked on everything, really – nothing specific,” Dejdamrong says.
“I am making sure I’m improving in all the different martial arts, trying to better every aspect of my game.
“My teammates here at Evolve have been a tremendous help in my preparation for this bout.
“There’s no one specific thing that I’ve improved on. I just made sure to add equal value to all aspects of my game.”
A multi-time, multi-division Muay Thai World Champion, Dejdamrong has been constantly working on improving the other aspects of his skill set to help bring them up to par with his world-class striking.
Although he has been working hard on his grappling skills, his upcoming bout with wushu-sanda champion Kaushik may offer the opportunity for him to showcase the spectacular striking techniques that took him to Muay Thai stardom earlier in his career.
That will give him an intriguing opportunity to test his abilities against a different discipline.
“It’s hard to compare the different martial arts like wushu and Muay Thai. They are very different styles and have their different strengths,” he says.
“The only way to compare them properly is once we step in the cage on 9 November.”
Dejdamrong’s return is motivated not just by competition, but by the desire to one day win back the ONE Strawweight World Title.
The Thai says his skill set is at a higher level than ever, and he plans on showcasing that in his upcoming bouts, starting this Friday in Singapore.
“I’ve been training really hard and preparing for anything that might come my way in the cage. Preparing for all possible situations so I feel much stronger and ready,” he says.
“I’m very confident that I will win this bout. My preparation will show on the night itself, and I hope to get back on the path to attain my goal to become World Champion again.”