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Sinsamut Klinmee (centre) with Mehdi Zatout (left) in his corner ahead of his bout at ONE Fight Night 16 in Bangkok. Photos: ONE Championship
Martial ArtsMuay Thai

ONE Championship: Sinsamut Klinmee ‘doesn’t want to fight’ if Mehdi Zatout is still suspended

  • Former Muay Thai title challenger ‘afraid of being banned too’ after supporting gym owner Zatout in dispute with ONE
  • Venum Training Camp boss suspended after fighter Alaverdi Ramazanov rushed into ring to confront Jonathan Haggerty in Bangkok
ONE Championship
Nicolas Atkin
Nicolas Atkin
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Former ONE Championship lightweight Muay Thai title challenger Sinsamut Klinmee has backed Mehdi Zatout after he was suspended – and even suggested he will not fight without his coach in his corner.

Venum Training Camp co-owner Zatout has been barred from all ONE events for six months after he and his fighter Alaverdi Ramazanov “bypassed security” in Bangkok last weekend.
Ramazanov and Zatout, who cornered Sinsamut earlier on the card for his victory over Mouchine Chafi, came to ringside at Lumpinee Stadium after the main event. Jonathan Haggerty had just beaten Fabricio Andrade to win the vacant bantamweight kickboxing title at ONE Fight Night 16.

Former champion Ramazanov then got into the ring and interrupted new two-sport king Haggery’s celebrations to challenge him to a fight, which drew the ire of ONE boss Chatri Sityodtong, earning the Russian a suspension along with Zatout.

“Well this is just my personal opinion on the situation that happened,” Sinsamut told the Post. “I feel like Mehdi, he takes care of 40 to 50 athletes, and there will always be someone in that crowd who is a little bit more stubborn, who does what they want.

“I feel like maybe it’s better to just punish Alaverdi alone and not Mehdi. I also asked Mehdi, ‘Did you ask Alaverdi to go into the ring?’ He said no.

Chatri wants Tawanchai vs Haggerty ‘mega fight’ at Wembley

“I just think Mehdi not coming to ONE Championship for six months affects a lot of fighters. If it was me and there’s no Mehdi cheering for me or supporting me, it would be difficult to me.

“Mehdi is the first person to bring me to ONE Championship and I would like him to be beside me when I fight. Now he cannot be there for six months. it will affect a lot of the fighters, in the motivation and the support that they have.”

The 40-year-old French-Algerian Zatout, a former kickboxer and Muay Thai fighter in ONE, told the Post was “not responsible” for Ramazanov’s actions.
Mehdi Zatout looks on in Sinsamut Klinmee’s corner at ONE Fight Night 16 at Lumpinee Stadium.

Sinsamut later added his own thoughts on social media. “I don’t want to fight if I don’t have you cheering me,” he wrote on Facebook, regarding his coach.

“I don’t want to say anything because I’m afraid of being banned too. The baby is about to be born, but I want to say a little,” Sinsamut added in a video posted to TikTok.

“I don’t want [ONE] to ban Mehdi because it will affect the fighters in his camp and others too. Maybe it can be a fine instead, and ban Alaverdi.

“I would like to come and ask for sympathy because otherwise the fighters in the camp will have a hard time.”

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