Sittichai Sitsongpeenong will make an unscheduled return to the sport of Muay Thai this week. He faces fellow Thai Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym at ONE: ‘Battleground’ Part III which will be broadcast on August 27th.

The featherweight bout only came about because Tawanchai’s original opponent, Saemapetch Fairtex, was forced to withdraw when one of his cornermen tested positive for Covid-19. Sittichai had been scheduled to face Tayfun Ozcan in a kickboxing contest but the Dutch fighter broke his hand last week.

It will be Sittichai’s first Muay Thai fight since 2014. He held the Lumpinee and Thailand 147lbs titles when he decided to switch to kickboxing so the 29 year old has plenty of experience, albeit none of it recent.

By contrast Tawanchai is one of the biggest names on the stadium scene in Bangkok and has won numerous ‘fighter of the year’ awards. However he will be moving up in weight by 10lbs having originally been booked for a bantamweight bout.

Former strawweight champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke (11-6) will also be on the card. He faces China’s Banma Duoji (13-1) who will be making his promotional debut.

ONE: ‘Battleground’ Part III, Singapore, August 27th
Muay Thai: Sittichai Sitsongpeenong vs. Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym (Featherweight)
Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke vs. Banma Duoji (Strawweight)