TOKYO: It was a historic evening in Tokyo, Japan recently as the stars of ONE: A New Era put on a scintillating show for a packed Ryogoku Kokugikan, also known as Ryogoku Sumo Hall, an indoor sporting arena located in the Yokoami neighbourhood of Sumida, Tokyo.
Featuring an exciting main event, and three incredible co-main events, World Titles changed hands and fans of martial arts witnessed an absolute spectacle.
Anticipation had been riding high, particularly among his Malaysian fans, when it was announced that Malaysia’s own Mohammed ‘Jordan Boy’ Bin Mahmoud would be featuring alongside many of the great names under the ONE Championship stable of warriors, as he braced for a clash against 2-time Muay Thai World Champion, Panicos Yusuf of Cyprus in a ONE Super Series bantamweight Muay Thai bout in ONE Championship’s inaugural presence in the Land of the Rising Sun.
Unfortunately, on a night when he seemed to have followed the script to a tee, at least as far as Team Jordan Boy was concerned, the all-action 22-year-old Malaysian was unable to attain the ending he so craved after an exciting three-round contest.
The two bantamweights traded powerful combinations throughout the bout, but it was the Cypriot athlete who landed the more telling blows. In the end, all three judges scored the bout in favour of the United Kingdom-based Yusuf to win by unanimous decision.
Despite the disappointing end for Mohammed, and his legions of fans, the rising Malaysian talent has vowed to come back stronger as he returns to the drawing board in preparation for what lies beyond.
Meanwhile, in the night’s other scintillating clashes…
Japanese mixed martial arts legend Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki put on a masterful display of grappling dominance as he submitted Filipino icon Eduard “Landslide” Folayang to be crowned the new ONE Lightweight World Champion.
After flashing a high kick, Aoki shot in for a single leg and put Folayang on the mat with a takedown before swiftly transitioning into an arm-triangle choke from half guard. Aoki tightened his squeeze and put Folayang to sleep before celebrating the victory in front of his rapturous hometown crowd.
Defending ONE Women’s Strawweight World Champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan of China continued her dominant reign over the division, defeating challenger “Unstoppable” Angela Lee of Singapore by TKO in the fifth and final round.
Although the Singaporean was aggressive and had Xiong in a number of dangerous submission attempts, the champion was lighting Lee up on the feet the entire bout.
In the final round, Xiong punished Lee with hard kicks to the midsection and fierce punch combinations that forced the referee to intervene and award Xiong with the stoppage win.
Meanwhile, in another much awaited duel, Myanmar’s Aung La N Sang successfully retained his ONE Middleweight World Championship with a spectacular second-round TKO victory over Japan’s Ken Hasegawa.
The impressive Aung La N Sang was dominant throughout the bout, punishing Hasegawa with an arsenal of powerful punches and thunderous kicks. A stiff right straight from Aung La N Sang late in the second round spelled the beginning of the end for Hasegawa, as the defending champion followed up with ground-and-pound to score the finish in dominant fashion.
An unfortunate sequence of events turned in the ONE Bantamweight World Title clash between champion Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon of the Philippines and former titleholder Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes of Brazil.
Fernandes, in the driver’s seat after two rounds of action, landed a takedown in the third round but was left unable to continue after Belingon connected on a flurry of illegal elbows to the back of the head. The Filipino athlete was flashed a Red Card and was automatically disqualified as Fernandes was subsequently awarded the ONE Bantamweight World Title.
In the much anticipated ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix quarter-final contest, the 12-time Flyweight Mixed
Martial Arts World Champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson of the United States made a successful ONE Championship debut, submitting Yuya “Little Piranha” Wakamatsu of Japan.
Although Wakamatsu managed to land a few clean punches to keep Johnson on his toes, the American showcased his impeccable grappling skills to transition from one position to the next with ease. After grabbing a hold of Wakamatsu’s neck in the second round, Johnson secured a deep guillotine choke to force the tap.
Russia’s Timofey Nastyukhin ‘welcomed’ Eddie “The Underground King” Alvarez of the United States to ONE Championship by finishing off the former four-time Lightweight Mixed Martial Arts World Champion inside of the first round of a ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix quarter-final bout.
After several brief exchanges at range, Nastyukhin closed the distance and hurt Alvarez with a left straight, sending him reeling towards the cage fence. The Russian subsequently unloaded a barrage of punches as Alvarez covered up before the referee called a halt to the contest.
Muay Thai legend Yodsanklai “The Hero” IWE Fairtex put on a dominant performance in his highly-anticipated rematch with the Netherlands’ Andy Souwer, knocking out his rival in the second round of a ONE Super Series Kickboxing contest.
The first round saw fierce action from the opening bell, with the Thai legend dropping Souwer early. Towards the end of the round, Yodsanklai hurt Souwer again and almost finished him. Less than a minute into the second round, the impressive Thai warrior put on the finishing touches as Souwer hit the canvas for the final time.
And So It Continued
In a ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix quarter-final bout, former ONE World Title challenger Danny “The King” Kingad and Pancrase Flyweight Champion Senzo Ikeda figured in an intense war of attrition for three whole rounds.
It was an incredible performance from the two athletes as both showcased their full repertoire of skills. However, it was Kingad of the Philippines who was awarded a close unanimous decision victory for his efforts in the end.
Former ONE Flyweight World Champion Kairat Akhmetov of Kazakhstan overcame a spirited effort from Reece “Lightning” McLaren of Australia to win by unanimous decision after three rounds of the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix quarter-final bout.
The Australian had great difficulty taking the bout to the ground as Akhmetov utilised his Greco-Roman wrestling to control the action in the clinch. On the feet, Akhmetov found a home for his left hook on McLaren’s chin, connecting cleanly on multiple occasions. In the end, all three judges saw the bout in favour of Akhmetov.
Muay Thai icon Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon continued his winning ways as he eked out a tough split decision win over France’s Hakim Hamech in a ONE Super Series Muay Thai contest. The two-world class strikers stood toe-to-toe for the action-packed bout, thrilling the crowd with their crisp combinations. In the end, it was the spirited Thai warrior who earned the close decision.
Former WBC Muay Thai Super Bantamweight World Champion Joseph “The Hurricane” Lasiri of Italy notched his first ONE Super Series win, edging out Japan’s Hiroki Akimoto via majority decision.
The Italian started out strong and had Akimoto on the defensive in the opening round but the Japanese fighter retaliated and made it an exciting back-and-forth contest in the succeeding rounds. However, after three rounds of action, it was the Lasiri who emerged victorious.
Japanese women’s atomweight star Mei “V.V.” Yamaguchi bucked a slow start and scored a third-round submission win over Russia’s Kseniya “The Tigress” Lachkova. Lachkova’s height and reach proved to be a problem early for the DEEP Jewels Featherweight World Champion, who had trouble closing the distance. In the third and final round, the petite Yamaguchi was able to take Lachkova down and secure a deep armbar for the slick submission win in front of her delirious hometown crowd.
Multiple-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Garry “The Lion Killer” Tonon of the United States made easy work of Indonesia’s Anthony “The Archangel” Engelen. The American athlete closed quarters on Engelen early, taking him down with a swift double leg in the opening moments of the featherweight contest. On the mat, the American truly shined, transitioning to various dominant positions whilst remaining in full control of the action. With less than a minute to go in the first round, Tonon secured Engelen’s back and pounded him out to win by technical knockout.
A spirited clash between two lightweight hopefuls kicked off ONE: A New Era showcase. After a few moments of solid action on the feet, South Korea’s Yoon Chang Min locked in a deep rear naked choke to force India’s Bala Shetty to tap with less than a minute to go in the first round.