ONE Championship fighter-turned-model Muhammad Aiman aiming for MMA return by end of 2022 – ‘I want to be a champion’
- “Jungle Cat” has not fought since a late 2019 loss to Chen Rui, having been sidelined by a shoulder injury
- Malaysian is hoping to fight by November, and sees Aung La N Sang stablemate Tial Thang as perfect foil
Muhammad Aiman has not fought in 932 days. That is not the way the 27-year-old Malaysian bantamweight planned it, but he is making the most of his situation.
During his hiatus – the result of a persistent shoulder injury – the ONE Championship fighter has begun carving out a secondary career as a professional model.
It has not always been easy, but he says there is some overlap between the two professions.
“It’s really cool,” he told the Post from his home in Bali, Indonesia. “It’s definitely almost like fighting. You’re doing it for free at first, then you kind of figure it out. It’s been really cool. I’ve been really lucky.
“It’s pretty natural for me, that’s why I like it. But at the same time, like in everything, there’s stuff to work on.
“It’s still the beginning for me, but I enjoy it, and it’s something I want to do.”
Aiman (6-4) has also been teaching children’s classes at Bali MMA, where he has trained for the bulk of his career. He enjoys that work too, and still trains regularly himself – including a new weightlifting routine – but admits it is challenging not being able to fight.