■ Harley F. Palangchao
Following his impressive comeback fight when he finished his opponent in 23 seconds in September, Filipino fighter Lito Adiwang is set to settle his unfinished business with compatriot Jeremy Miado.
ONE Championship has arranged a rematch between Adiwang and Miado on Nov. 3 at the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand more than a year after their first encounter in March 2022.
Adiwang, who had climbed the ladder as one of the top strawweight contenders, suffered a technical knockout loss to Miado due to a serious leg injury.
That injury has sidelined Adiwang for a long time until such time he had also decided to leave Team Lakay and joined HIIT Studio in Bali, Indonesia.
Miado, meanwhile, sustained his winning streak when he scored a third-round knockout of Daniel Williams in October 2022.
But his winning streak ended with a submission loss to then-undefeated Russian destroyer Mansur Malachiev in June this year.
The 30-year-old Adiwang, on the other hand, stopped Indonesia’s Adrian Mattheis in 23 seconds of their strawweight bout last September.
Now riding high from that statement performance, Adiwang will attempt to follow it up by getting some revenge against Miado next month.
Adiwang told reporters he is excited to go back fighting and settle his unfinished business with Miado.
“I’d rather go back and fight, finish unfinished business, and after this, I can go and relax,” Adiwang said.
He said that loss was the hardest setback of his career to accept.
“It truly bothered me. It hurts losing in a way that’s beyond my control. I would have accepted it if I lost via submission, or via knockout, a clear loss – that’s easier to swallow. Losing via injury in a fight where I felt like I was winning, it hurts. It truly hurts,” he added.
