Liam Harrison shows emotion as he celebrates after knocking out Muangthai PK.Saenchai in one of the greatest Muay Thai bouts in history at ONE 156. (ONE Championship)
L
iam Harrison is no stranger to challenging fights inside the ONE Championship Circle. His performance at ONE 156 in April is a testament to that.
"Hitman" survived two knockdowns in the first minute to mount the comeback of the year and finish Muangthai PK.Saenchai inside the opening round of their bout, earning a shot at Nong-O Gaiyanghadao’s ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world championship.
While the Englishman prepares for his chance to strip the longtime divisional king of his crown, he is keeping a close eye on the ONE flyweight Muay Thai world grand prix – and he has been quite impressed with one particular fighter so far.
“Savvas Michael was absolutely incredible. Naseri is no joke, and Savvas made him look like a novice. I thought he was absolutely brilliant,” Harrison said.
“I'm really looking forward to him and Rodtang [Jitmuangnon] because if there's a foreigner who can beat him at that weight, it is Savvas.”
Cypriot star Michael picked apart his Iranian-Malaysian opponent for much of their bout. “The Baby Face Killer” unloaded with well-timed flurries that wore Naseri down to book a place in the tournament’s semi-finals, where he will face ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion Rodtang.
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“The Iron Man” dominated Jacob Smith in his quarterfinal bout to ease his way into the next round. And though “Hitman” was rooting for his fellow Englishman, he admits that he was outclassed for much of the bout.
“Jacob never fought on that level. Rodtang fights at that level every month. But he stayed in there; he took some shots; he gave him nasty shots back; he made a good fight of it. But, I think, to reach the first fight at that level, people are really going to count themselves [out],” he said.
Though he is looking forward to the showdown between Michael and Rodtang, Harrison was enthralled by all four of the quarter-final bouts, and he believes the remaining athletes in the illustrious tournament thoroughly deserve their semi-final places.
“Superlek looks devastating. I don't really think he got out of first gear too much against [Taiki Naito]. Walter [Goncalves] blew [Josue Cruz] to smithereens, didn't he? I thought [Cruz] might have done a bit better, to be honest, but Walter was on form, and yeah he got him,” he said.
It’s clear that the Brit star, like the rest of the world, is eagerly awaiting to see how the rest of the grand prix plays out – and who comes out on top in the end.
In the meantime, watch ONE 159 on July 22 in ONE Super App and subscribe to ONE Championship on YouTube!
This article is published in collaboration with ONE Championship.
