Nong-O Gaiyanghadao plans to bring a world title back
On February 16 at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, Nong-O Gaiyanghadao will face off against Han Zi Hao for the inaugural ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Championship.
Nong-O — a native Thai who trains out of Singapore’s Evolve MMA — is extremely excited about his upcoming main-event showdown at ONE: Clash of Legends.
With yet another opportunity to compete in front of his compatriots, the 32-year-old wants nothing more than to leave the Impact Arena with the gold
“I feel very privileged to get the opportunity to fight for the ONE World Title in front of all my fans in Bangkok,” he explains. “I hope to put on a good performance and make my fans proud.”
His opponent, Han Zi Hao, is a Top King Muay Thai World Champion, and he is also ONE Super Series’ most active fighter in 2018.
Vastly accomplished and more experienced, Nong-O will not be intimidated by these credentials.
Over a 23-year professional career, he became a multiple-time Lumpinee Stadium Muay Thai World Champion and rightfully earned his status as a Muay Thai Legend.
In 2015, his hard work and talent would lead to a once-in-a-lifetime offer to join Evolve MMA’s prestigious World Champion instructor team.
By joining the squad, he was afforded the opportunity to perfect his craft.
Not only has he mentored young superstars like ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion "Unstoppable" Angela Lee and lightweight contender Amir Khan, but Nong-O has also been training daily alongside other Muay Thai legends.
“I’m lucky to have so many World Champions to train with here at Evolve, like Sagetdao Petpayathai and Sam-A-Gaiyanghadao, and my main coach, Yodkunsup Por Pongsawang, is a trainer of World Champions, too,” he says.
“I just love Muay Thai and new challenges. ONE Championship, being a global event, is a new experience for me, and I’m loving this opportunity of competing on this stage.”
So far, he has impressed greatly. He beat Fabio Pinca at ONE: Heroes Of Honor in April, and followed that by up defeating Mehdi Zatout at ONE: Kingdom Of Heroes six months later.
Those victories have led to his upcoming challenge for the ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Championship.
Headlining what is perhaps the most stacked division in ONE Super Series, many fans will be expecting the Thai legend to feature heavily in 2019.
Despite all the attention and accolades, Nong-O remains humble and is only focused on the step right in front of him – claiming the inaugural gold.
“I hope to fight as often as possible, but I’m taking it one fight at a time,” he says. “First up is the 16th of February in Bangkok. I’m not looking past it yet.”
It is another chance for Nong-O to make history and bring another belt back to Evolve.
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