After falling short in her first shot at ONE Championship gold two years ago, American striking star Jackie Buntan made the most of her second chance this past weekend.
The Boxing Works brawler outstruck multiple-time kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion Anissa Meksen at ONE 169 on Saturday, November 9, to score a unanimous decision win and claim the inaugural ONE women’s strawweight kickboxing world title.
Following a 6-1 stint in ONE’s Muay Thai ranks, ONE 169 marked Buntan’s first time competing in the bigger gloves. However, that didn’t seem to faze her one bit, and she appears to have gained a taste for gold.
“[My] first [kickboxing] world championship fight, and I became a champion. So, yeah, it’s definitely the biggest moment of my career, but it’s the first of many,” Buntan said.
“Next year, the goal is to keep defending the kickboxing belt and go for the Muay Thai belt and hold both belts at the same time.”
A win over Meksen is a notable achievement. The French-Algerian standout is one of the most well-respected female strikers in the world, and she has over 100 professional wins and a collection of accolades to her name.
But when the bell rang last Saturday, she was able to implement the game plan she had formulated from studying “C18,” and that kept her one step ahead at all times.
“I felt confident right from the get-go, right from the start, when I stepped in there. I think after the first round, she was kind of playing it more defensive,” Buntan said.
“I was expecting her to come and surge at me, pressure me, and by the start of the third round, I felt pretty confident being able to do it, everything we’ve been working on.
“I felt like I was able to see everything. Nothing really came as a surprise either. So yeah, I was confident the whole time.”
