29 June 2018
Yangon, Myanmar: The largest global sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), once again electrified the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar last Friday night, 29 June. ONE: SPIRIT OF A WARRIOR played host to another amazing evening of world-class martial arts action, as the world’s best martial arts talents took to the ONE Championship cage to showcase their incredible skills. In the main event, reigning ONE Middleweight World Champion “The Burmese Python” Aung La N Sang of Myanmar retained his title with a shock fifth round knockout of game challenger Ken Hasegawa of Japan.
In the main event of ONE: SPIRIT OF A WARRIOR, Myanmar national icon “The Burmese Python” Aung La N Sang successfully defended the ONE Middleweight World Championship, defeating Japan’s Ken Hasegawa by way of knockout. Although both men possess respected grappling pedigrees, the two stood toe-to-toe from start to finish. Aung La N Sang came out of the gates blazing, peppering Hasegawa with a torrent of heavy blows from different angles. However, the bout’s complexion changed in the second round when, from a southpaw stance, Hasegawa made it a competitive contest, repeatedly tagging Aung La N Sang with his boxing combinations. Drawing loud cheers from the raucous crowd, the two warriors unloaded blistering combinations that pushed each other to the limit. The rest of the match saw both men figure in one of the most exciting bouts in ONE Championship history, and an extremely close championship encounter. In the final moments of the fifth round, Aung La N Sang managed to sneak in a thunderous uppercut to shut the lights off on Hasegawa.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Leandro “Brodinho” Issa of Brazil overcame a devastating knockdown early in the first round against ONE Championship newcomer Roman “Boom” Alvarez of Guam to win by first-round submission. After recovering from a huge punch from Alvarez in the opening moments of the bout, Issa made it back to his feet and took his younger foe down to end up in half guard. From there, Issa latched on to an arm triangle choke to force the quick tap.
Making his ONE Super Series debut, Thailand’s Sorgraw Petchyindee Academy impressively marched to a majority decision victory over Samy Sana of France in a three-round catchweight contest. The two squared off in a spirited clash of gifted strikers, peppering each other with fiery combinations while showcasing great defense. Sorgraw closed out the final round of the match on a strong note, limiting Sana’s offense with his counter strikes. In the end, Sorgraw earned two of the three judges’ nod to have his hand raised by majority decision.
Lumpinee and Rajadamnern Stadium champion and Muay Thai legend Sagetdao “Deadly Star” Petpayathai put together a solid performance, defeating opponent “The Cannon” Ma Jia Wen in a razor-thin close three-round featherweight showdown. Operating behind a thudding lead left kick, Sagetdao unloaded a myriad of strikes on Ma, who was more than willing to take the punishment in order to deliver his own. Ma also had his moments, making the bout extremely close. In the end however, all three judges deemed Sagetdao the victor by unanimous decision.
Top featherweight contender Tetsuya Yamada of Japan put together one of his most impressive grappling performances to date, finishing opponent Rafael Nunes of Brazil in the second round. After two rounds of back-and-forth action on the mat, it was Yamada who showcased his grappling mastery, stifling Nunes with seemingly effortless transitions while threatening constantly with submissions. The end came in the final minute of the second frame, after Yamada blasted Nunes with ground-and-pound which opened up a deep cut, coercing the cageside physician to call a halt to the contest.
In a battle of undefeated bantamweights, “Rock Man” Chen Lei of China exited the famed ONE Championship cage as the only competitor with an unblemished professional record, thwarting Indian debutant Ahmad Qais Jasoor in the third round. Both men provided fans with a tremendous display of offense in a contest that saw the two warriors swapping solid blows and momentum-shifting takedowns for three rounds. Chen capitalized on a drained Jasoor in the final frame, getting the finish by drenching his opponent with unforgiving strikes on the canvas.
After pulling off a shocking knockout of former strawweight kingpin Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke last March, Jeremy “The Jaguar” Miado of the Philippines had his huge wave of momentum halted by the streaking Kritsada Kongsrichai of Thailand. Kongsrichai authored one of the most dominant performances of the night, wearing out Miado with slams to the mat and punishing ground-and-pound. Prohibiting Miado from fully utilizing his advantage in the stand-up with his grappling proficiency, the 13-time Thai national wrestling champion easily cruised to a unanimous decision victory.
Thailand’s Tukkatatong Petpayathai made his highly-anticipated ONE Super Series debut, defeating opponent Mehdi Zatout in a spirited clash of striking specialists. The kickboxing contest featured fierce action all throughout, with Tukkatatong pulling away on the scorecards. Tukkatatong scored on a monstrous left hook which dropped Zatout at the end of the first. In the end, all three judges scored in favor of Tukkatatong to win by unanimous decision.
Local Myanmar athletes and former lethwei stars Saw Darwait and Mite Yine locked horns at the center of the cage to the roar of a packed arena. Looking to make an impression in his first outing under the ONE Championship banner, former two-time Gold Belt Champion Mite Yine made quick work of his compatriot, drilling Saw Darwait with a barrage of ground strikes to force the stoppage in the first round.
Kicking off ONE: SPIRIT OF A WARRIOR live from the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium were ONE Super Series kickboxers Elliot “The Dragon” Compton and Matthew “Sobek” Semper who put together an exciting three-round striking showcase. In the end, it was Compton who emerged victorious after utilizing a superb jab, knocking down Semper on multiple occasions to win by unanimous decision.
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