Lara Fernandez makes her second ONE Championship appearance this Saturday. She faces Daokongfah Banchamek in Manila and will be looking for her first win for the promotion.
The Spaniard made a good impression at ONE 159 despite dropping a decision to atomweight champion Janet Todd in a title fight. She appeared to be slightly ahead going into the final round but the American finished strongly to take the win:
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Enjoyable experience
Fernandez clearly enjoyed that experience despite suffering defeat. She will be back in action at ONE 164 on Saturday and told her followers,
“I can’t wait to be back in the circle.”
She has been matched with an opponent who has won medals representing Thailand. But Daokongfah is in a similar situation having also suffered defeat on her ONE Championship debut when she was beaten by Annisa Meksen.
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Small town
Spain is not a country that is typically associated with the sport of Muay Thai. But Fernandez prepares for all her fights in Coria del Rio, a small town near Seville.
She will be going up against an opponent who fights out of a much more prestigious gym. Daokongfah trains at the Banchamek Gym under Thai legend Buakaw Banchamek.
While she is winless in her ONE Championship career the Thai does have a victory over the promotion’s reigning atomweight Muay Thai champion Allycia Rodriguez on her record. It looks set to be another difficult assignment for the Spaniard.
Having made her debut in 2011 she has not exactly been an overnight success. Fernandez spent years competing on the European scene before getting the opportunity to fight with ONE Championship.
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Underdog status
She came into the fight with Todd as an underdog with many predicting that the American would easily defeat the debutant. But Fernandez proved a lot of people wrong with her performance that day even if she couldn’t quite claim the belt.
The Spaniard is going up against another opponent with impressive credentials even if the title won’t be on the line this time. Having caused the champion all sorts of problems last time out she will be looking to prove she well and truly belongs with the division’s elite with a win this weekend.
