Vandaryeva wary of Supergirl’s repertoire
SINGAPORE: Ekaterina “Barbie” Vandaryeva, who faces 18-year-old Thai striking sensation Supergirl in a strawweight Muay Thai matchup, believes her age and experience will be the deciding factor in the foray.
The 30-year-old will attempt to use her experience when they enter the circle at One: Heavy Hitters at the Singapore Indoor Stadium tomorrow.
However, the Belarusian knows she can’t count out the rising Thai star just because of her youth. In fact, the Kick Fighter Gym representative believes being younger has its advantages.
“At [Supergirl’s] age, you don’t analyse much, don’t think much. You just come out and keep hitting,” the fighting pride of Minsk said.
“You go and strike until you’re dead [tired]. This is an advantage of being young.”
She further broke down her philosophy on age and fighting.
“When you grow up, you start analysing, thinking what’s working, what to do next,” she added. “And sometimes it doesn’t work in your favour, especially in sports.”
Considering that, when Vandaryeva steps into the circle and the door closes behind her, she will benefit from standing somewhere in the middle of not overthinking her strategy but not letting her game plan sail with the wind either.
She must remain focused because no matter how young Supergirl may appear, the teenager known for her abspearing knees is a legitimate threat. She’s been practising the combat sport since she was three years old and has competed in over 40 professional Muay Thai fights.
The Thai’s repertoire isn’t lost on “Barbie.”
“She is, of course, an interesting fighter — not a bad one,” she said.
“She is somewhat unusual because Thai athletes don’t like using their arms very much. They do it rarely, mostly to distract and get into clinch and so on.
“But she keeps rushing with her arms endlessly, so I need to contain her advances.”
By doing so, Vandaryeva hopes to emerge victorious over the younger of the Jaroonsak siblings and make a case for a rematch with former foe Jackie Buntan, who defeated her once.
Speaking of former opponents, the three-time Muay Thai world champion believes she’s faced much tougher competition.
“You need to understand that her opponents in the bouts we have seen are not of a very high level,” Vandaryeva expressed.
“But at the same time, I’m an experienced fighter in terms of the scale of competitions and the opponents I’ve had.”
The programme will be shown live on AIS Play at 6.30pm while Thai Rath TV will begin its live broadcast at 9.30pm.