The Top Highlights From ONE: REIGN OF DYNASTIES

The martial artists at ONE: REIGN OF DYNASTIES produced plenty of highlight-reel moments on Friday, 9 October.

Only one of six fights went the distance, with three of them ending in the very first round. If you blinked, you missed it – but that’s where we come in.

Although it was tough to choose between all the scintillating finishes, certain performances stood out from the rest.

Without further ado, here are the top three highlights from a brilliant return to Singapore.

#1 Sam-A’s Flawless World Title Defense

The main event featured a masterclass from two-sport ONE World Champion Sam-A Gaiyanghadao, one of the greatest strikers to ever grace the planet.

Sam-A began his ONE Strawweight Muay Thai World Title defense against Josh “Timebomb” Tonna with a workmanlike opening three minutes. As Tonna tried to come forward and pressure the reigning champ, the Thai icon scored with thudding kicks to the legs, body, and head as he found his distance and timing.

The first knockdown of the second round came after Tonna threw a right push kick toward Sam-A. The Evolve star countered with a picture-perfect straight right, and though the Aussie answered the referee’s count, the living legend was far from finished.

First, a low kick swept the Muay U athlete to the ground once again, leading to a second eight-count from the referee.

Tonna bounced back to his feet, but two powerful right hook-left head kick combinations from the Thai backed him up toward the Circle Wall.

In response, the Aussie tried a push kick once again, but Sam-A caught and countered with a pinpoint straight left on the button, sending “Timebomb” to the canvas for the TKO win at 2:30 of the second round.

It was an admirable effort from Tonna to bring the action to his rival, but Sam-A is simply untouchable at the moment – and still the reigning strawweight Muay Thai king.

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#2 Khan Wins For His Dad

Amir Khan entered his lightweight contest against Rahul “The Kerala Krusher” Raju with the intent to give his father, who is battling Stage IV brain cancer, one more memory of his son’s incredible talent.

And he did precisely that.

Khan began the first round with strong leg kicks, but Raju closed the distance and initiated the clinch. The Juggernaut Fight Club representative was able to briefly take Khan down on two occasions, but the Singaporean popped right back to his feet each time.

With less than 20 seconds left in the first round, Khan created just enough separation from the clinch to land a right elbow on Raju’s chin. The Indian collapsed to the canvas, and the hometown hero closed the show with heavy ground-and-pound to seal his record-setting ninth knockout in ONE Championship.

The performance put Khan back in the win column, but on this night, nothing was more important than honoring his biggest supporter.

#3 Saputra’s Creative Submission

You never know what you might see inside the Circle, and on Friday, Eko Roni Saputra used his ingenuity to deliver a spectacular, creative submission.

Early in his catch weight battle with Murugan “Wolverine” Silvarajoo, the Indonesian Wrestling Champion applied pressure and forced his foe to the back foot. Saputra then found success with his developing stand-up attack and changed levels to secure a takedown.

From side control, Saputra began isolating the right arm of “Wolverine.” The Evolve athlete forced the arm down and pinned it between his left calf and thigh. Finally, the Indonesian pushed down on Silvarajoo’s elbow to apply maximum leverage to the modified shoulder lock and force the tap.

The impressive submission victory made it three straight wins for Saputra and thrust him deeper into the stacked flyweight mixed martial arts division.

Read more: ONE: REIGN OF DYNASTIES – Full Results And Highlights For Sam-A Vs. Tonna