Vietnamese-Australian Martin Nguyen is looking to make history at ONE: LEGENDS OF THE WORLD.
The ONE Featherweight World Champion, known as “The Situ-Asian”, dethroned the previously-undefeated Marat Gaurov with a spectacular one-punch knockout. With the feat, he captured the belt at ONE: QUEST FOR GREATNESS in Kuala Lumpur back in August.
Now, the 28-year-old is stepping up a weight class to challenge defending ONE Lightweight World Champion Eduard “Landslide” Folayang in the main event in Manila on 10 November.
Nguyen’s head coach Fari Salievski, who oversees his training at KMA Top Team in Liverpool, New South Wales, said his man is ready to step up and become the first two-weight world champion in ONE Championship history.
“Martin is quiet by nature,” he said. “This quiet hides the competitive beast that thrives on a challenge, and as you have seen with his bouts, he steps up a gear when it is called upon, and I have no doubt he will do the same again.
“This is an amazing quality. It is not who knows more, but who reacts the fastest, and the ability to adjust and adapt is not something that can be learned.
“As such, being with Martin is never work. Set tasks are a breeze, and he sets the pace with the team. My role these days is more ensuring the mental game is uninterrupted by life, before and during the bout.
“We both understand this is a journey that will not last forever, and as such we aim to enjoy the ride and take every opportunity it brings.”
Despite the step up in weight class, Nguyen says he has largely kept his training regimen the same ahead of his potentially history-making bout.
“Everyone keeps asking me why am I keeping it the same, but why change something that has not failed you?” he said.
“Why change something when it is not broken? You keep going until it goes wrong, and then you focus on what you need to be doing.
“Basically, it has been the same training camp since the Li Kai Wen match — the same strategy and the same everything throughout the whole time. It got me on the streak, it got me the belt, and it could win me a second. So we will see how everything goes, and how it all plays out.”
Following his win over Gafurov, Nguyen took a month off, then launched straight back into training camp in late September.
His days started off at 6:30am, with an hour of strength and conditioning work, while his evenings were spent at his gym KMA Top Team for a two-hour session working on his BJJ, striking, and strategy.
One difference in this camp has been how he approaches his preparation for Folayang himself. When he prepared for Gafurov, he was getting ready to face an entirely different kind of opponent - a man with a very clearly-defined skillset. This time around, however, he faces an opponent who he views as significantly more well-rounded.
“In terms of Marat, I did focus on my BJJ, but that only came when I was doing BJJ,” he said. “I was purely focusing on the rear-naked choke and him taking me down.
“Every day, the normal set-up of training from Marat to Eduard is the same. But with Eduard, I am focusing on my whole overall game, whereas with Marat, I knew he was more of a one-dimensional opponent, so I focused more on the ground game when it came to the ground training.”
Weekends may offer time off for most of us to enjoy some rest and relaxation, but Nguyen powers through his with additional training sessions.
His Saturday afternoons see Nguyen lace up the gloves and don the headgear for a punishing 10-round “shark tank” sparring session, with rotating opponents from KMA Top Team and other local gyms jumping in to push him against an always-fresh opponent.
On Sundays, Nguyen hits the roads and trails, as he embarks on an outdoor training session, running up mountains and over sand dunes.
He admits it’s not the most enjoyable part of his training regimen, but as he battles through the pain he always keeps one thing in mind – Folayang’s ONE Lightweight World Title.
“After running one, you are like, ‘What am I doing here? Why am I doing this?’” he said. “But after you get to 30, you are like, ‘I have to bring the belt home after this.’
“Every week, you put yourself through the same struggle and the same mindset, and it is like a motivation sparks inside of you.”
One benefit of this particular contest is the fact that Nguyen is moving up in weight, so he won’t have to go through a weight cut to ensure he’s within the championship limit. Instead he’s working on bulking up, using additional meals and snacks to gradually build more muscle mass to his frame.
“I can eat whatever I want,” he said. “Before, when I was competing at featherweight, I would have to watch everything I ate, even to the lolly. But now, I am shoving down whatever is in front of me. Obviously, I am controlling myself when it comes to portions, but I can eat whatever I want.”
His appetite for success is clearly there for all to see, and he’ll look to satisfy that hunger for a second title when he faces Folayang in Manila on 10 November. It should be a contest to remember.