Jackie Buntan to defend title in Hemetsberger rematch

Filipino-American striker Jackie Buntan will defend her ONE Women’s Strawweight Kickboxing World Title on February 14, 2026, in a high-stakes rematch against Austria’s Stella Hemetsberger at ONE Fight Night 40 in Bangkok, Thailand.

The main event clash at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium marks a champion-versus-champion showdown, as Hemetsberger currently holds the ONE Women’s Strawweight Muay Thai World Title.

The two fighters last met at ONE Fight Night 35 in September 2025, where Hemetsberger handed Buntan a unanimous decision defeat to win the vacant Muay Thai title.

“I feel extremely hungry to get back in the ring,” Buntan told GMA News Online. “I didn’t feel like my usual self in that last fight so I’m happy I’m able to run it back so soon from my last fight.”

In their previous five-round encounter, Hemetsberger dropped Buntan twice in the opening round and fended off the American’s comeback efforts to become Austria’s first-ever ONE world champion.

That loss derailed Buntan’s bid to become only the third woman to hold ONE titles in both kickboxing and Muay Thai.

Now, with the roles reversed, the rematch offers Buntan the opportunity to even the score and record her first successful title defense.

Hemetsberger, 26, enters the bout with a near-perfect record of 9-1 and will look to extend that to 10-1 while becoming just the third female athlete to hold two different world titles in ONE Championship history.

Meanwhile, Filipino flyweight standout Danny Kingad is also set to return on the same card, facing Chinese knockout artist Hu Yong in mixed martial arts action.

Originally scheduled to fight at ONE Fight Night 15 in 2023, the bout was postponed due to a foot injury that sidelined the 30-year-old Kingad.

Kingad burst onto the ONE Championship scene with a 9-1 start, including notable victories over current ONE Flyweight MMA World Champion Yuya Wakamatsu and former title challenger Tatsumitsu Wada.

However, he has recently suffered consecutive losses to Wakamatsu and former champion Adriano Moraes, and now seeks redemption against Hu.

Against the heavy-hitting Chinese contender, Kingad will aim to prove he remains a top-tier threat in ONE’s highly competitive flyweight division.