ONE Championship has announced its intention to sue Rodtang Jitmuangnon in three separate countries, citing numerous violations of his contractual agreements with the organization. This development occurs less than two weeks before Rodtang is slated to headline ONE Samurai 1 against Takeru Segawa on April 29, 2026, in Tokyo.
In an official statement released across its social media channels, ONE Championship confirmed the initiation of legal proceedings in Singapore, Japan, and Thailand. The promotion cited “multiple breaches of contractual obligations” along with “the dissemination of potentially misleading information and statements that may be considered defamatory” as the basis for their legal action.
ONE stated that they had made “continuous and sincere efforts to work with Rodtang in good faith” prior to this step, but that Rodtang’s repeated failure to adhere to his contractual commitments left them with no other recourse. The organization further indicated its intent to seek “appropriate damages in the relevant jurisdictions” and will refrain from further comments on the specifics of the ongoing legal proceedings.
Background of the Dispute
This situation has been escalating for several months. In November 2025, Rodtang withdrew from a scheduled Flyweight Muay Thai World Title bout against Nong-O Hama at ONE 173 in Tokyo, reportedly feeling unwell after weigh-ins. The fight was canceled, and Nong-O had also failed to make weight, further complicating matters for the promotion.
Tensions intensified in February 2026 when Rodtang shared cryptic social media posts expressing career-related frustrations. He subsequently filed a defamation complaint with Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau on February 19, targeting individuals he accused of making abusive remarks about his family. While seemingly separate from his issues with ONE, this incident marked a period of unusual public activity for the fighter.
The core of the contract dispute became public in March 2026. On March 25-26, Rodtang publicly declared on Facebook that his contract with ONE Championship had expired and that he was considering a new offer. However, sources close to ONE Championship informed the Bangkok Post that Rodtang remained under contract with the promotion, contrary to his public assertions.
Further complicating matters in early April 2026, Rodtang published a detailed Facebook post alleging that his signature had been forged on over 30 contracts. He claimed that when his lawyer confronted the individual responsible, that person admitted to signing the additional contracts himself. This series of events—including public claims of contract expiry, allegations of forged signatures, and related social media statements—appears to form the foundation of ONE’s complaint regarding misleading statements and potential defamation.
Fight Status Remains Uncertain
Despite the ongoing legal action, Rodtang’s anticipated rematch against Takeru Segawa is still listed for ONE Samurai 1 on April 29 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, with the ONE Interim Flyweight Kickboxing World Title at stake. Rodtang himself had previously described the Takeru fight as a “special bout outside of his contract terms,” a framing that ONE’s current legal action directly challenges.
The two fighters first clashed at ONE 172 in March 2025, where Rodtang defeated Takeru by knockout in the first round. Takeru immediately sought a rematch, identifying Rodtang as his opponent for what he announced would be his final professional fight. The bout was officially announced in February 2026 and scheduled for April 29.
The certainty of this fight proceeding as planned is now in doubt. ONE has not announced any plans to remove the bout from the card, and Rodtang confirmed as recently as late March 2026 that he is “fully prepared” to compete. ONE has stated that the legal process is ongoing and has declined to provide further details. Information regarding how proceedings in Singapore, Japan, and Thailand will intersect or the timeline ONE is working towards has not yet been released.