“The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan (15-1) has experienced a meteoric rise to superstardom in ONE Championship, blazing a historic trail to become China’s first-ever mixed martial arts World Champion.
The 30-year-old from Beijing, China, may have only competed thrice in The Home Of Martial Arts, but her performances have captivated fans across the globe.
On Saturday, 8 September, Xiong will defend the ONE Women’s Strawweight World Title for the second time. She faces Brazilian challenger Samara “Marituba” Santos (12-5-1) in the main event of ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON, which takes place at the Baoshan Arena in Shanghai, China.
Ahead of her return to action, we look back at her trio of eye-catching victories.
A Statement-Making Debut
In December, Xiong made her promotional debut against Team Lakay’s April Osenio at ONE: WARRIORS OF THE WORLD in Bangkok, Thailand, and she delivered an emphatic statement to her strawweight rivals.
“The Panda” set the pace for the match almost immediately – she connected with one of her famous left hooks, followed by a stiff right hand inside the opening 12 seconds of the contest, and never looked back.
Xiong found a regular home for her strikes, while also effectively nullifying Osenio’s attempts to tie her up and take the bout to the ground.
It was “The Panda” who took the match to the canvas with a beautiful inside trip, before locking up a guillotine choke. Osenio managed to escape, however, and forced the action back to the feet.
Xiong was happy to oblige, and exploded with a flurry of rights and lefts, which dropped the Filipina to the ground for good.
The referee called off the match at the 3:44 mark of round one, giving the Chinese megastar her first victory in the world’s largest martial arts organization.
A Historic World Title Victory
Xiong’s outstanding debut win over Osenio thrust her into the first ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship bout just a month later at ONE: KINGS OF COURAGE in Jakarta, Indonesia.
She unleashed a display of mixed martial arts dominance to overpower fellow title challenger Tiffany “No Chill” Teo, and captured the belt.
“The Panda” relentlessly powered forward, scored consistently with heavy strikes throughout the contest, and left her Singaporean rival with no option but to try and take it to the mat.
Even when Teo was successful in dragging “The Panda” to the ground, Xiong was more dangerous, as she battled off her back, and threatened with submission attempts.
In the end, however, it was Xiong’s fierce striking that proved to be the difference maker. She finally broke Teo’s stubborn resistance halfway into the fourth round with a breathless salvo of punches that eventually dropped the Singaporean.
Just like that, China had its first-ever mixed martial arts World Champion.
A Successful First Title Defense
Some say it is tougher to defend a World Title than to win one, and that was proven to be the case in Xiong’s first defense of the ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship.
In June, at ONE: PINNACLE OF POWER in Macau, she was pushed all the way to the judges’ scorecards for the first time in her ONE tenure.
Though Laura “La Gladiadora” Balin proved to be a durable and dogged adversary, the Chinese superstar had the upper hand throughout the contest.
She dictated the pace throughout the five-round affair and constantly threatened the Argentinian challenger with both her striking and her grappling. The bout showcased Xiong’s improved conditioning, and her ability to maintain a rigorous pace for 25 minutes.
Even though “The Panda” was unable to secure the finish, her martial arts superiority was there for all to see, as she claimed a unanimous decision victory, and retained her belt.
This victory cemented Xiong’s status as the best women’s strawweight athlete in the world, and she can further validate that by defeating Santos at ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON.
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