Joseph Lasiri is heading into his first World Title defense with a chip on his shoulder. ‘The Hurricane’ is set to face interim title holder Prajanchai PK Saenchai. This fight will determine the undisputed ONE Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion at ONE Friday Fights 46: Tawanchai vs. Superbon.

After taking the coveted strap from the Thai star at ONE 157 in May 2022, Lasiri hoped to claim another belt by challenging Rodtang Jitmuangnon for his ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Title. Unfortunately, things didn’t go his way at ONE on Prime Video 4 last November.

Joseph Lasiri plans a strong comeback

To make matters worse, Lasiri suffered an injury later on that has prevented him from defending his strawweight crown until now. While he hasn’t fought since his match with ‘The Iron Man,’ the Italian warrior says he has never stopped training.

“I just had an injury that took me a lot of time to come back from, but now, everything is okay. It’s a year since my last fight against Rodtang, but this doesn’t give me any pressure. I’m ready. I’m always in the gym, so I am ready to fight. It was time for me to get better, but now everything is okay,” he said in an interview with ONE.

“I continued to train even when I was injured, doing what I could and following my doctor’s instructions, but I have been training fully since September.” In their initial encounter, Lasiri shocked the world by forcing Prajanchai to wave the white flag before the start of the fourth round.

Joseph Lasiri hits back at naysayers

Despite it not being a one-shot punch knockout, critics would still claim Lasiri got ‘lucky’ with his win. Thus, the Kick And Punch Milano representative wants to silence the doubters now.

“I want to show the people that the win wasn’t lucky. I really want to confirm my World Title against a big name. Everyone knows Prajanchai. When he lost against me, many people were shocked, and I am ready to shock them again,” he said.

“If someone has never had a fight, they can think [it was lucky]. But if you’re in the arena, it is never lucky,” he continued. “I will come there as the champion because I won the belt, and I deserve that. But like last year, I will be the underdog, just waiting for the time to do my job.”

Read More – Rodtang Jitmuangnon Issues Stern Warning to Joseph Lasiri – “I Want To Knock Him Out With a High Kick”

Lasiri will have his work cut out for him, as Prajanchai has been on a tear with three straight victories. But beating the streaking interim title holder in his first World Title defense would certainly erase any doubts about who the true king of the division is. All the action from ONE Friday Fights 46 will be broadcast live on pay-per-view exclusively at watch.onefc.com on Friday, December 22.