“He’s going to sleep early” – Thanh Le hunting for a finish in redemption fight vs Tang Kai at ONE 166: Qatar

Thanh Le has big plans in mind for his shot at reclaiming the ONE featherweight MMA world championship that he lost back in 2022.

The elite striker is known for his knockout prowess, making him a dangerous fighter to stand with regardless of the opponent.

One of the only fighters to safely navigate these waters was Tang Kai, who beat him at ONE 160 to become the champion.

Now, the American-Vietnamese talent has earned his huge rematch against the Chinese superstar after claiming the interim crown against Ilya Freymanov to set up a unification rematch at ONE 166: Qatar on March 1.

Thanh Le will have undoubtedly learned a lot from their first encounter as he looks to make the right adjustments before stepping inside the Lusail Sports Arena.

Despite how the first fight played out for him, the interim king is once again coming to put his opponent away and he believes it won’t take long for him to find the champion’s chin.

He told ONE Championship:

“I’ll be honest with you. If we make it out of the first round, I’ll be surprised. He’s going to sleep, and he’s going to sleep early.”

Thanh Le cannot afford to headhunt in this fight

It’s hardly a surprise that Thanh Le is expecting an early finish in his rematch with Tang Kai given the skill set that he possesses.

That being said, he cannot afford to put too much emphasis on the knockout and become single-minded in his approach.

This was a big part of their first encounter where Tang Kai was able to shut down a lot of his opponent’s offense for the majority of the contest.

If Le is going to take back the throne, he might have to show some more evolution in his game, like he did last time out against Ilya Freymanov, where he claimed the interim title with a first-round submission.

ONE 166: Qatar will air live and free via Prime Video for North American viewers with an active subscription on March 1.