Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, Iran Diaz

Boxing’s super flyweight division was so exciting at one time that an entire bout card series was created to showcase its previous king Román “Chocolatito” González, 31, of Nicaragua. In 2017, he was the World Boxing Council Super Flyweight World Champion.

Gonzalez was considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world at the time. All that changed, when a former garbage collector named Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, 31, of Thailand came in.

Srisaket defeated Gonzalez twice in the United States. The Thai boxer defeated the Nicaraguan boxer via majority decision on March 18, 2017 at the Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York and via knockout on September 9, 2017 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.

Now with a new king, the super flyweight division of boxing remains as exciting as ever. A highly-competitive bracket, it has given us some of the best bouts of this year.

After beating Gonzalez twice, Srisaket went on to defeat two more opponents. The Thai boxing champ defeated Juan Francisco “El Gallo” Estrada, 28, of Mexico via majority decision on February 24, 2018 at the Forum in Inglewood, California and Young Gil Bae, 39, of South Korea via technical knockout on July 21, 2018 at the Workpoint Studio in Bang Phun, Thailand.

The top roster of talent is not afraid to do battle with each other, which has only strengthened boxing’s super flyweight division. There are a lot of young guys coming up who are hungry to make a name for themselves.

Tipping the scales at 115 lbs (52kg), these boxers are fast, high-volume punchers known for their exceptional cardio. ONE Championship chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong immediately saw the untapped potential in this division and gave an opportunity of a lifetime to Srisaket.

Riding a 19-bout winning streak, Srisaket will defend his WBC Super Flyweight World Title in his homeland in ONE Championship’s inaugural boxing match-up. It will be his first title defense in Thailand and third overall.

On October 6, 2018, Srisaket and his challenger Iran “MagnifiKO” Diaz, 28, of Mexico will headline “ONE: Kingdom of Heroes” at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand. Aside from their boxing match, the card also features six mixed martial arts matches and seven ONE Super Series striking contests.

“I am excited to showcase my skills at home in Bangkok,” Srisaket said. “As a world champion boxer, this is a rare opportunity for me to be able to compete in front of my people.”

Get to know more about Srisaket here: