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ONE Championship CEO talks Vandaryeva-Supergirl controversy
The Vandaryeva-Supergirl controversy is one of the big fallouts from ONE: Heavy Hitters.
The two engaged in some strawweight Muay Thai warfare on January 14th at Singapore Indoor Stadium. Many on social media made their voices heard as to what they felt was an egregious decision when the bout wrapped up.
Supergirl got the nod via split decision to the surprise of many including Ekaterina Vandaryeva herself. Those in attendance made it clear who they thought won as Vandaryeva was showered with cheers when doing her post-fight interview inside the Circle.
I spoke with ONE Championship figurehead Chatri Sityodtong after ONE: Heavy Hitters on a virtual media call. We spoke about the polarizing decision, the upcoming inaugural strawweight Muay Thai title bout, and a targeted Vandaryeva vs Supergirl rematch.
Vandaryeva-Supergirl controversy
If this Vandaryeva-Supergirl controversy informs the ONE strawweight Muay Thai title picture at all
“I think I’m going to order an immediate rematch between Ekaterina (Vandaryeva) and Supergirl. Just because again, as someone who’s been doing Muay Thai for 35 plus years, I can tell you Ekaterina won that fight easily. I mean, it was not even close. So I just don’t know what the judges were seeing. I have no idea what they were judging. Ekaterina rocked Supergirl twice, almost finished her. It was literally 1 punch, 1 kick away from finishing Supergirl. And mind you, Supergirl is super tough.”
“I was so impressed with her warrior heart and her staying power. But you know, technically speaking, Ekaterina had more volume, more accuracy, and two near finishes. I just don’t see how she lost that fight. But again, I’m not a judge. The judges have a tough job and I respect it. At ONE, we do try to work with the very best judges across all disciplines from around the world. We fly them in but at the same time, I know Muay Thai. If there’s one thing I know, it’s Muay Thai. Ekaterina won that fight.”
