Casablanca – Moroccan martial arts star Ilias Ennahachi will face a pivotal kickboxing matchup against Thai veteran Petchtanong Petchfergus at ONE Championship’s show “ONE 171:Qatar” next month.
The winner between Ennahachi and Petchtanong could be the next challenger for the ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing world championship.
Ennahachi most recently defeated second-ranked Hiroki Akimoto via unanimous decision at ONE Friday Fights 81 on September 27, taking his overall professional record to 40-3.
The 28-year-old former ONE Flyweight Kickboxing world champion moved up to bantamweight last year, picking up a knockout victory on his divisional debut against Iran’s Aliasghar Ghodratisaraskan.
With a 5-0 record at ONE Championship, Ennahachi is one of the promotion’s most established stars and the only fighter to beat current two-sports champion Superlek Kiatmoo.
The Moroccan, who is on a quest to challenge for the bantamweight kickboxing crown, faces a mammoth task against Petchtanong.
The 39-year-old veteran returned to action after a two-year-layoff and captured a second-round knockout victory against former divisional king Alaverdi Ramazanov in June. He was scheduled to face Algeria’s in-form Nabil Anane at “ONE Fight Night 26:Lee vs Rasulov” in December 2024, but the bout was cancelled after he was hospitalized ahead of the matchup.
Still, the former ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing world champion Petchtanong remains one of the sport’s most experienced stars and owns an amazing 359-56 overall professional record.
As two of the bantamweight kickboxing division’s most established contenders clash, the world title will be on the line at the main event at ONE 171: Qatar as Jonathan Haggerty defends his belt against Chinese veteran Wei Rui.
ONE 171: Qatar will kick off at 3 p.m. (WET) on Thursday, February 20 inside the Lusail Sports Arena and will be broadcast live via beIN SPORTS.
