Phetjeeja Lukjaoparongtom is one of the best muay Thai prospects seen in some time.
After back-to-back finishes in the ONE Friday Fights series, ONE Championship showed their faith in “The Queen” by awarding her a six-figure contract and a chance to compete in the promotion’s marquee events.
The 21-year-old gets her first chance to show what she can do as part of the main ONE roster when she steps into action opposite former ONE world title challenger Lara Fernandez at “ONE Fight Night 12: Superlek vs. Khalilov” on July 14, which is available live and free to North American fans with a Prime Video account.
Here are three reasons why fans should remember Phetjeeja’s name as she makes her move to ONE’s global stage next week.
1. She has an unbelievable story
Phetjeeja grew up in a muay Thai camp in Chonburi, Thailand, and she was fascinated with the sport from an early age.
She began training under the tutelage of her father at age 6. Inspired by watching fights at her local temple, the youngster soon had the itch to try her hand in the ring.
Initially, Phetjeeja was banned from fighting by her mother, and her fighting aspirations were complicated further by a lack of other female competitors in rural Thailand.
After getting permission to fight, she managed to stay active and became famous on the local scene for taking on fights against boys. By age 10, Phetjeeja had competed 100 times, with 70 of her battles coming against the opposite sex.
In 2013, the 12-year-old star was banned from such matches, as the Sports Authority of Thailand didn’t allow inter-gender fights.
She then transitioned to amateur boxing and claimed silver at the World Youth Championships.
The lure of muay Thai never abated for Phetjeeja, however, and she soon headed to Bangkok to pursue her true passion.
2. She has rare knockout power
Since her return to muay Thai, Phetjeeja has shown that she has genuine knockout power, which is a rarity in the atomweight division.
The fire in her strikes has been on full display in her ONE tenure so far, and she has finished both outings with punches.
The 21-year-old demolished Greek striker Fani Paloumpi with a vicious body attack in her promotional debut in March, and she overwhelmed Ines Pilutti inside one round in her sophomore appearance in May.
With power in spades and an evolved boxing game from her time in the sport, Phetjeeja is set to strike fear into ONE’s main roster when she step up at ONE Fight Night 12.
3. She is just getting started
Despite her young age, Phetjeeja holds a staggering professional record of 204-12.
And the Lukjaoporongtom gym representative looks like she’s only getting started.
Now harboring dreams of one day winning the ONE atomweight muay Thai world champion – currently held by Allycia Hellen Rodrigues – Phetjeeja is set to embark on a new frontier at the pointy end of the sport.
Her world title quest starts with Fernandez on July 14, and if she can reel off another statement win, it would be hard to argue that “The Queen” isn’t ready to claim her shot at the 26-pound gold belt.
