ONE Championship: “I could become an inspiration”

ONE strawweight Muay Thai top contender Aliff Sor Dechapan of Malaysia and Thailand is not just fighting for himself.

The 22-year-old dynamo carries an entire nation’s hopes with him as he aims to claim 26 pounds of gold in the world’s largest martial arts organization.

Aliff is expected to challenge reigning ONE strawweight Muay Thai world champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai later this year. He earned his shot at the belt with a dominant unanimous decision over Ramadan Ondash at ONE Fight Night 38 in December.

For Aliff, beating the mighty Prajanchai isn’t just about achieving personal glory. It’s also to bring pride and honor to Malaysia and repay the support of his countrymen.

He told the South China Morning Post (SCMP) in a recent interview:

“I think it’s very important to me to be one of the Malaysians on the global stage because right now, I could see that a lot of Malaysians have respect for me.”

The Sor Dechapan product continued:

“Because there are a lot of people who—there are a few people who offer me the position as a coach for a national team event. And I could see that I could become an inspiration for a lot of people, like kids and other people who maybe have this dream.”

Watch the full SCMP interview:

Aliff Sor Dechapan explains why he doesn’t take pre-fight trash talk seriously

Aliff Sor Dechapan understands the promotional aspect of building up fights.

The Malaysian-Thai star happily engages in pre-fight hype exchanges with his opponents. But at the end of the day, it’s nothing personal.

Aliff told SCMP:

“I think among the fighters, there has never really been anything. There has never really been any real beef because I think it’s all about marketing. It’s all about people selling fights. And after the fight, we just say sorry to each other, and then it’s done. There’s nothing personal there.”