ONE Championship: Aung La N Sang will refuse rematch if Reinier de Ridder wins – ‘don’t want anything I don’t deserve’
- ‘I don’t want to just get it immediately because of who I am or what I’ve done. I want to earn it,’ says ONE middleweight champ
- ‘The Burmese Python’ predicts a finish against undefeated ‘Dutch Knight’ at Inside The Matrix in Singapore on October 30
Aung La N Sang has no intention of losing his ONE Championship middleweight title. But he won’t demand an immediate rematch if Reinier de Ridder walks away with the belt at Inside The Matrix in Singapore on October 30.
“The Burmese Python” (26-10) faces the undefeated “Dutch Knight” (12-0) next weekend in the headliner of a stacked ONE card featuring four title fights. It will be 35-year-old N Sang’s fourth middleweight title defence after he successfully defended his light heavyweight title for the first time against heavyweight champ Brandon Vera in October 2019 in Tokyo.
In a live SCMP MMA interview with both fighters, De Ridder confirmed he would happily give N Sang a rematch if his hand is raised in the Circle.
“There’s no other way, right? I don’t think ONE is going to allow me to go to anyone else,” the 30-year-old said. N Sang doesn’t want any handouts, however.
“No, I don’t think so,” N Sang said. “I don’t want anything I don’t deserve. I want to work my way for everything, that’s my philosophy in life – work hard and things will fall into place. I don’t feel entitled, I don’t feel anything. I wouldn’t care, I’m willing to work back up for it if that were to happen, but that’s not how I am.