Rodtang Jitmuangnon Withdraws From Title Bout; Danial Willliams Steps Up

ONE Fight Night 8 has been dealt a big blow to their card as Rodtang Jitmuangnon has been forced to pull out from the main event against Superlek Kiatmoo9 due to an undisclosed injury.

The Thai superstar had already set his sights on becoming a two-sport champion, following in the footsteps of former Muay Thai star-turned-mixed martial arts (MMA) monster Stamp Fairtex who achieved the feat first in 2019.

Rodtang became a household name after a successful run with the ONE flyweight Muay Thai championship that included defenses against the likes of Walter Goncalves, Jonathan Haggerty, Petchdam Petchyindee and Joseph Lasiri.

Winning the flyweight kickboxing title off of his fellow countryman's waist would have pushed him further into the stratosphere with regard to his popularity among combat sports fans.

He already received his introduction to the MMA world when he took on industry icon Demetrious Johnson in a hybrid MMA-Muay Thai bout in March 2022 as a featured bout at ONE X.

Because of Rodtang's sudden withdrawal from ONE Fight Night 8, few would believe that the title bout would be postponed to a later date, but that does not seem to be the case for ONE Championship's higher-ups.

Danial Williams, the No. 5-ranked strawweight in the Muay Thai and MMA divisions, is taking the golden opportunity presented to him and will now become Superlek's opponent at the event.

"Mini T" has proven himself to be one of the best acquisitions ONE Championship has had in recent memory as he debuted against Rodtang in an April 2021 Muay Thai joust and fought four times in 2022 under MMA rules.

Williams is known best by fight fans as a hard-nosed fighter that is willing to take the hits if it means he gets to land an even harder strike.

Taking on the challenge that is Superlek despite only having one Muay Thai bout with the Singapore-based combat sports promotion would be surprising for those who are not familiar with his career since he is a decorated champion outside of MMA.

Williams' resume also features him winning the 2013 World Kickboxing Federation flyweight championship, the 2015 World Muaythai Council (WMC) featherweight title, and the gold medal at the 2015 Muaythai University World Cup in the 60kg division.

He was already a part of ONE Fight Night 8 as he was scheduled to face Rui Botelho, but now he gets his chance to win his first-ever world title under ONE Championship with a win over Superlek in the main event.

Last-minute changes almost always happen in the world of combat sports, and Superlek finding a new challenger with just about a couple of days away from the event will test his mettle as champion.

Rodtang's withdrawal marks the second time that ONE Fight Night 8 had to change headliners as Arjan Bhullar and Anatoly Malykhin's unification bout for the heavyweight title was bumped off due to a reported "shift in broadcaster commitments."