Noelle Grandjean has a fight coming up although we don’t know the date or opponent. But the atomweight has been sparring with some big opponents to prepare for what will be her second ONE Championship appearance.
Grandjean shared some footage of her sparring with Irish boxer Thomas Carty. He weighed in at 259lbs for his last fight, meaning he weighs twice as much as the atomweight mixed martial artist.
Competing on ONE Championship cards means Grandjean is required to weight 115lbs while passing hydration tests. She shared some footage of herself boxing against Carty in a sparring session at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket.
Given the difference in height and weight Grandjean understandably decided to take an unconventional approach:
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Element of surprise
Carty holds a 6-0 record and is the reigning BUI heavyweight champion in his native Ireland. But while he clearly knows how to slip a jab and duck a hook the undefeated boxer probably hasn’t spent too much time working on his takedown defence.
So Grandjean definitely had the element of surprise when she ducked down to secure a double leg takedown against the much larger boxer. Next week she will be taking on someone her own size at ONE Friday Fights 28.
We don’t know who the opponent will be but it seems like Grandjean’s next fight will be on August 11th as she announced on July 23rd that she had,
Two more grind weeks ’til it’s showtime again.
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Successful debut
Grandjean is coming off a successful promotional debut at ONE Fight Night 3 last October. She stopped touted American prospect Lea Bivins in the the first round and picked up a $50,000 USD performance bonus.
With a 4-0 record she looks to be a top contender at atomweight. Grandjean hasn’t cracked the top five yet but #4 ranked Alyona Rassohyna is pregnant while #5 ranked Tiffany Teo can’t make the weight.
There is also doubt over the future of Angela Lee. The reigning atomweight champion is expected to announce her retirement following the tragic death of younger sister Victoria Lee.
So the stage is set for an up and coming atomweight champion to make a big statement. Grandjean looks well positioned to do just that and she has been sparring with some big opponents in order to prepare.
