Whhhhaaapp… Bap… Bap… Bapbap! The pounding sound of boxing gloves hitting the heavy punching bag in one corner of Madness Muay Thai gym located in Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya is music to the ears.
It's been a while since I last paid a visit to a gym to witness a Malaysian athlete in training.
But now with the recent call-up by ONE Championship (ONE) of some of our top fighters for the upcoming ONE: REIGN OF DYNASTIES II to be held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on October 16, it's time for our local warriors to rise to the occasion once again. And for me to return to where the blood, sweat and tears are really poured.
Months have passed since they demonstrated their prowess in the ring, in part due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Suffice it to say, the call up by Asia's largest global sports media property is another lease of life for Malaysia's Muay Thai stars, Mohammed "Jordan Boy" Mahmoud and his compatriot, Azwan Che Wil.
"Actually, I didn't expect to be getting into the ring again so soon," muses Mohammed Mahmoud, whose fight moniker, "Jordan Boy", is a tribute to his Jordanian father, Mahmoud Omar.
Making himself comfortable in one of the oversized rubber "tyres" scattered around the gym, the Kedah-born athlete concedes somewhat conspiratorially that he'd been taking things pretty easy since his last explosive bout against eight-time Muay Thai world champion, Liam "The Hitman" Harrison, in a bantamweight battle early this year.
It was a memorable Bangkok outing — but one that the Malaysian lost.
"I wasn't unhappy about that loss, to be honest," he says, shrugging his wide shoulders, before adding that he'd given everything he could despite the limited time that he had to prepare.
Then, grinning widely, Mohammed, or "Mat" as he's known to his friends, adds: "I'm just happy that I managed to inflict some damage to his face."
He reminds me that he'd also just returned from his time with the Malaysian team at the SEA Games (Southeast Asian Games) where he led the country's kickboxing campaign.
"I wasn't in the best possible shape lah, but that's no excuse," adds the striking sensation swiftly, before conceding: "I guess luck wasn't on my side that night. I suffered from one of his heavy punches in the first round. But I'm still proud to have been given the chance to pit my skills against a Muay Thai legend!"
READY FOR BATTLE
With a call-up from ONE barely a month or so ago — and at the same time, an extension to his contract with the organisation — this former MuayFight featherweight champion is pumped.
But he also acknowledges that he has his work cut out to be "battle-ready" for his bantamweight clash against China's Han Zi Hao, a Top King Muay Thai world champion.
"Since the beginning of the year until now, I've not had any fights. I've been chilling out, going to the gym only for light training and to lift weights," confides the affable 24-year-old, before sharing sheepishly that he saw his weight balloon to 74kg.
"When Baba (dad) told me that ONE was extending my contract and was calling me back to the ring, I immediately returned to serious training."
He's also been busy setting up his new gym, Jordan Top Team, with the help of his family members.
More than 80 per cent completed, Mat and his older sibling, Nidal, also a fellow martial arts practitioner will be the chief trainers there. But that's a story for another time!
For now, the lanky 175cm athlete is focusing all his attention on his upcoming clash.
Shares Mat, who's managed to drop his weight to 68kg: "I've stopped all the lepakking (hanging out) now. The days are more structured. My mornings are spent jogging for about 9km, speed work and skipping etc. Then it's off to the gym where Nidal, and another trainer will do a lot of sparring, pad work, as well as strength conditioning with me."
Mischievously, Mat confides: "This time around, the emphasis of my training is on sparring and pad work. I want my face to get used to being punched hard! Also, it's good to spar with Nidal because he's about 10 kilos heavier than me so if I can withstand him, I should be ok!"
STAYING POSITIVE
How much do you know about your opponent, I ask the athlete, synonymous for his flamboyant style outside of the ring.
He pauses to reflect, his gaze trained on a corner of the gym where the other Malaysian hopeful, Azwan Che Wil is putting in the moves for a photo shoot.
Reverting his attention back to me, Mat replies: "See that guy (nodding his head in Azwan's direction)? He fought my opponent during his first fight for ONE."
Did he win? I couldn't help blurting out.
The Kedahan shakes his head, before elaborating: "Azwan was low-kicked, lost his footing and I think landed on his hand and broke it. Zi Hao is a good fighter and he's fought several big names before."
But Mat's determined not to let that fact faze him. A small smile replaces the hitherto pensive expression when he confides: "Baba and Nidal keep telling me to just train hard and that I'm worthy of being given another chance by ONE. I've studied my opponent's game a bit, and I know he's good. But he's not infallible. He doesn't take too well to being pressured. In terms of technique, I think I'm slightly ahead."
He's working hard to "tune" his head as the big day nears.
"I tell myself I need to rise to the challenge," says Mat. "If I could get into the ring with Liam before, whom I truly believe is a much better fighter, then why should I fear this one?"
With a new contract under his belt, Mat's aware that he needs to perform.
"ONE selects the top fighters from every country. World champions. In Malaysia, we don't have such a thing as a world champion. We're all like jaguh kampung (village heroes). But I want to be bigger than that."
His normally-smiling face turns earnest when he emphatically concludes: "It's an honour to be in the same stable as elite fighters from around the world. I want to fight. And of course, win. But just being on this platform is an amazing ride. Maybe we don't win everything but we can only improve by taking on challenges. And I'll never say 'no' to a challenge!"
REACHING FOR THE STARS
"WHEN I was small, I used to watch WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) and always dreamt of holding THAT huge belt. I said to myself, one day, I'd be holding a big belt too," reminisces OneSongchai R1 champion Azwan Che Wil, a shy smile spreading across his tanned face.
Seated opposite me now having completed his photo-shoot, the athlete, who hails from Kuala Krai, Kelantan appears to be in good spirits despite admitting to having slight jitters thinking about his upcoming flyweight clash against China's kickboxer, Wang "Metal Storm" Wenfeng, who's ranked #6 bantamweight in the world by Combat Press (a website dedicated to all things combat sports).
"It really felt like my dream was coming true when I received the message from a ONE representative via Facebook asking whether I'd be interested to join ONE. Just out of the blue. I honestly thought I was being pranked!" continues the 25-year-old, chuckling at the memory.
That was sometime back in 2018 and Azwan had just completed a tournament in Kuala Lumpur. Adding, he shares: "I'd heard of ONE before but I was unsure of what to do because as far as I knew, there was no Muay Thai in ONE Championship. And I wasn't about to do MMA (mixed martial arts)!"
To his delight, he soon discovered that the discipline known as the" art of eight limbs", characterised by the combined use of fists, elbows, knees and shins, had indeed been added in.
"As a Muay Thai fighter, you aspire to fight in great stadiums in Thailand, like the famous Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok. But most of the time, it's just one of those dreams… And then, this! To fight on the ONE stage is just like… the ultimate! Memang rezeki (it's a blessing)!" says Azwan, eyes flashing.
And for this reason, the soft-spoken former SUKMA Games athlete is determined to bring home victory after suffering two losses in a trot despite putting up impressive performances in his previous outings.
"I've had a baptism of fire with two tough fights since I signed on," muses Azwan, adding: "But I don't really mind because I view any chance I get to fight as an opportunity to get more experience and develop myself as a fighter."
A DIFFERENT WORLD
Going into the ring, an arena of "the big boys" as Azwan puts it, is surreal.
"I mean, I come from a very small kampung (village). We don't even have sophisticated gyms to train in. Sometimes, it's just a small shed with some punching bags and a few equipment. Training tends to be quite basic," he muses softly, before adding: "This is a different game altogether. The right mindset is crucial."
Elaborating, Azwan, the third of six siblings, confides that he's his own motivator. "I tell myself I need to do my best — always. No matter the situation, surrendering isn't an option," he says emphatically, before continuing: "That's why when I'm offered the chance to fight, with whomever, I just accept. To lose is part of the game. What's important, however, is when you lose, you lose with your honour intact."
The Kelantanese, who started training in Muay Thai at the age of 13 and made his professional debut at age 20, views his upcoming clash as an opportunity to prove himself — again.
"Of course, I'm nervous but my coaches tell me to just play my game and do my best. If there's rezeki, then the win will be mine," he says, softly.
Suffice it to say, Azwan, who's not fought since his last outing with ONE, has done some research on his opponent, who, at 176cm tall is about six centimetres taller than the Malaysian.
"He's slightly taller," concedes Azwan, adding: "So I'd be playing to his advantage if I keep 'running' away from him. I just need to get in there and punch and kick really. This is something I've been doing a lot of in my training. Also, if I'm correct, I think his weakness is his kicks. So I need to exploit that."
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
Recalling his early years in the world of combat sport, Azwan, who also played football and hockey at school, confides that he'd always been attracted to "aggressive" sports.
"I like anything that involves punching," he confides, chuckling heartily before adding swiftly that character-wise, he's nothing like his preferred pursuits.
But Azwan never started off with Muay Thai as it was still a relatively unknown sport in Kelantan back then.
"I joined a silat troupe when I was 8," he shares. But he soon realised that the "limited" movements of silat wasn't satiating his youthful need for more aggressive action.
Later, he learnt of a Muay Thai ring being set up not far from his home.
"I was so excited and immediately decided to join. The trainer was from Thailand; it wasn't long before I rose up as a fighter," remembers Azwan who currently conducts personal training in the sport to supplement his income.
In the early days, his fights comprised the usual circuit-type fights. But at the age of 18, Azwan was invited to join SUKMA where he ended up bringing home a silver medal.
"Then I got selected to represent Malaysia for a championship in Sweden. And not long after, I was involved in many more games outside of the country," he reels off, eyes shining.
A nod from a passing coach indicates that Azwan, a huge fan of Thailand's Rodtang "The Iron Man" Jitmuangnon, ONE's Flyweight Muay Thai world champion, needs to resume his training.
Before taking his leave, Azwan confides: "If I win, I'd just be happy to be given another fight. With anyone. I'm just going to take things one by one. My next one? To have my first victory in ONE Championship!"
Catch all the action for ONE: REIGN OF DYNASTIES II on the ONE Championship App and on YouTube on Oct 16, 2020.