By:  | March 6, 2024 3:13 pm

Janet Todd will compete for the final time at ONE Fight Night 20 this Saturday. The American is facing Phetjeeja Lukjaoporongtom in an atomweight kickboxing title fight.

The 38 year old hopes to retire as a reigning champion. But whatever happens this will be the final fight of her career,

“I’ve made my decision. And when I make my decision, I stick to it.  ONE Championship has given me such a great opportunity to achieve something that I never thought I could achieve before. I’ve got to do so many things in such a short period of time and experience so much and meet so many lifelong friends, but I’m ready to move on to the next chapter after this fight.”

Primary motivation

Todd is at the pinnacle of the sport. She might have lost her atomweight Muay Thai title to Allycia Rodrigues, who is also fighting on Saturday morning, but she remains the atomweight kickboxing queen.

One thing Todd doesn’t have is children of her own and it sounds like this is the primary motivation behind her decision to walk way from the sport,

“The other aspect of what I want in my life is to start a family, and I’m getting older. I want that part of my life as well.”

Winning streak

If she wants to retire on a high Todd will need to end Phetjeeja’s winning streak. The Thai has five victories from her five ONE Championship fights at Lumpinee Stadium.

At ONE Friday Fights 46 she beat Anissa Meksen and Todd says she was not surprised,

“She’s very heavy-handed, very boxing-oriented. So, I’m not surprised how well she did in the fight with Anissa. I think she had a really good game plan against her.

A fight between Todd and Meksen was touted for several years but will never never happen. The American is impressed by certain aspects of her opponent’s game,

“She’s definitely well-rounded. I think her strengths are her boxing and her head movement, and she showcased that in every one of her ONE Championship fights.”

 

Game plan

While Phetjeeja has had far too much for her recent opponents Todd thinks that she can end the Thai’s winning run. She has clearly been paying close attention to all her opponent’s previous fights and has come up with a strategy for Saturday,

“Her weakness, without giving away too much of my game plan, is with the way she throws her punches. She kind of puts her weight behind it and leaves certain parts of herself exposed.”

Losing at ONE Fight Night 20 would not ruin Todd’s legacy. She is one of only a handful of fighters to hold ONE Championship titles in two separate sports but the 38 year old would love to finish her career on a high with a win this weekend.