Top 5 Body Shot Knockouts In ONE Championship

The finishes come thick and fast in ONE Championship, but there is something particularly special about winning with a well-placed body shot.

It is rarely a matter of brute force. Instead, it takes an immense amount of skill and precision to land a strike in the right target area to render an opponent unable to continue.

Unlike a headshot KO, the afflicted martial artist still has his or her faculties. But an accurate strike takes away the body’s ability to defend, and the chain reaction will eventually lead to an early night.

Here are five of the greatest body shot knockouts ever seen on the global stage.

#1 Rodtang’s Relentless Body Punching Finishes Haggerty

When reigning titleholder Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon and Jonathan “The General” Haggerty met in a rematch for the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship at ONE: A NEW TOMORROW in January, the Thai superstar left no doubt about his status as the king of the division.

The pair battled it out for a close five rounds in their first encounter back in August 2019, but “The Iron Man” believed he had found the Londoner’s kryptonite — and he was right.

Rodtang set his stall out when he dropped his foe with a left hook to the liver in the opening frame. Haggerty worked his way back into the match, but the Thai dialed it up a notch as the bout progressed.

A powerful boxing salvo, interspersed with left and right hooks to the body, put “The General” onto the canvas for the first time in the third stanza. Then, some clubbing hooks to the head sent him down to the mat for the second consecutive time.

The third and final knockdown of the round came with a thudding left hook to the body, which sealed the TKO victory for the Jitmuangnon Gym representative and earned him the second successful defense of his crown.

#2 Belingon’s Stunning Spinning Back Kick

Team Lakay’s wushu-based martial artists are famous for their impressive kicking repertoire, and Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon showcased it to the world when he defeated Andrew Leone at ONE: HEROES OF HONOR in April 2018.

The former ONE Bantamweight World Champion dominated the opening stanza, and then he uncorked a ferocious spinning back kick early in round two that landed straight in the liver and sent the American flying across the ring.

Belingon chased the Bali MMA product to the corner, where he swarmed him with punches and knees. The referee had no choice but to stop the contest and award the victory to the Filipino warrior.

#3 Xiong Blasts Lee’s Body With Punches And Kicks

ONE Women’s Strawweight World Champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan defended her crown against the atomweight queen, “Unstoppable” Angela Lee, in an epic five-round battle at ONE: A NEW ERA in March 2019.

Xiong had to endure a painful-looking armbar attempt at the end of round four, but she came out firing in the fifth and final stanza as her Singaporean rival looked to have worn herself out.

The Chinese hero took full advantage of the situation. She drilled a straight right into the atomweight queen’s solar plexus. Lee immediately winced and dropped her hands, and Xiong kept up the pressure.

With her rival backed up against the Circle Wall, “The Panda” went high and low with her strikes. However, it was the barrage of thudding body kicks that finished off the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion.

#4 Kim Slips And Rips Against Nunes

With a perfect 7-0 professional boxing slate alongside his impressive mixed martial arts resume, it is no surprise that “The Fighting God” Kim Jae Woong has dynamite in his hands.

He displayed that in his promotional debut when he stopped Brazilian featherweight Rafael “Indio” Nunes at ONE: MASTERS OF FATE in November 2019.

The South Korean almost dispatched his rival in the opening frame, but the finish came in round three courtesy of a punishing body blow.

Nunes stepped forward with a jab, but “The Fighting God” slipped to his left, loaded his weight through his lead leg, and then smashed a powerful left hook into the Brazilian’s liver.

“Indio” crumbled and offered no resistance. Kim drove in a flurry of knees to the head until the referee stepped in and waved off the action.

#5 Kehl Drills Nolan’s Midsection For Debut Victory

German striker Enriko “The Hurricane” Kehl made his ONE Super Series debut against Liam Nolan at ONE: REIGN OF VALOR in March 2019 and immediately proved that he is a force to be reckoned with in the featherweight division.

Kehl opened up his path to the finish in round two with a spinning back kick to the gut, which hurt the Brit. He then took aim with left and right hooks to the body.

Nolan’s expression showed that he was in trouble, and “The Hurricane” scored with another left to the solar plexus, which dropped the Englishman to his knees.

Sensing his opponent’s vulnerability, Kehl kept up the pressure when the Londoner stood back up. He charged in and scored with a right uppercut and left body hook. Then, a short left knee to the ribs sent him to the canvas again.

This time, Nolan could not make the count, and “The Hurricane” earned himself a spot in the first-ever ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix.

Read more: The Best World Title Submissions In ONE Championship History