Nakrob And Yodlekpet Stay Dominant, Debuting Stars Shine At ONE Friday Fights 25
It was another electric night of martial arts action inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, July 14, as some of the brightest prospects in the world of Muay Thai and mixed martial arts took centerstage at ONE Friday Fights 25.
Nakrob Fairtex and Yodlekpet Or Atchariya kept their red-hot runs alive on the 12-fight card, while new faces announced themselves to the watching world in impressive style.
In case you missed any of the action from the Thai capital, here’s a rundown of what occurred at the thrilling event.
Nakrob Starches Petputhai To Stay Unbeaten In ONE
Nakrob Fairtex closed out the evening with a ferociously dominant showing against Petputhai Or Bor Jor Nakhonpanom in flyweight Muay Thai action.
After a sizzling start, Nakrob gave the electric Lumpinee Boxing Stadium crowd something to remember when he sent Petputhai onto the backfoot with a body shot before connecting with solid left and right hooks to push him into the ropes.
The Fairtex athlete’s dominance continued into round two, and he served up an onslaught of strikes to his Thai compatriot before putting his lights out for good with two lethal elbows at the 1:28 mark of the second frame.
Nakrob moved to 4-0 in The Home of Martial Arts with the KO win and improved his overall slate to 63-20.
Avatar’s Aggression Shines In Three-Round Battle With Cicek
Avatar PK Saenchai went to war with Ferzan Cicek in bantamweight Muay Thai action, and after three hard-fought rounds, the Thai standout left with a split-decision win in hand.
The 29-year-old pressured Cicek from bell to bell, but the Turkish star returned fire, showing his countering abilities while remaining elusive on the backfoot.
After three rounds of intense back-and-forth dueling, Avatar’s consistent aggression earned him the nod from two of three judges, handing him his second win in ONE and moving his professional slate to 97-42-12 overall.
Watcharaphon Blitzes Songchana To Earn Win In First ONE Outing
Watcharaphon Singha Mawynn showed the world why it’s never wise to exchange with him in 4-ounce gloves by taking out Songchana Tor Brucelee in their 128-pound catchweight Muay Thai battle.
The rangy pair slugged it out right from the bell, but Watcharaphon’s power was clearly more significant, as he sent his Thai compatriot to the canvas with a thudding right hand.
Songchana bravely tried to fight on, but another scorching cross from Watcharaphon leveled him again and handed the Singha Mawynn standout the KO win at 2:31 of the opening frame, extending his incredible record to 71-7-2.
Suriyanlek Finishes Yodduangjai In Dazzling ONE Debut
Suriyanlek Por Yenying couldn’t have asked for a more perfect promotional bow on Friday night, as he stopped Yodduangjai Sor Jor Montree in the first round of their 132-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout.
The 26-year-old pressured his Thai countryman from the opening bell, and a well-timed teep sent Yodduangjai to the canvas early on. But that was only a foreshadowing of things to come.
Suriyanlek continued to heap on the pressure, and a right uppercut followed by a right hook finished off his opponent for good at the 50-second mark of the opening frame.
With the debut win, Suriyanlek improved his professional slate to 76-25-2.
Kaoklai Bags Debut Win With One-Round Demolition Of Yodanucha
Kaoklai Chor Hapayak wasted no time in announcing himself in ONE’s strawweight Muay Thai division, as he dismantled Yodanucha ChotBangsaen inside one round.
The 24-year-old took the fight to Yodanucha from the opening bell, refusing to give him a moment to breathe.
Koaklai’s barrages of strikes quickly wore his Thai compatriot down, which forced the referee to stop the contest at 2:40 of round one.
The debuting star’s dominant win pushed his record to 38-13 overall.
Sakolpat’s Aggression Earns Him Nod Over Game Chatpichit
The 113-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout between Sakolpat ChotBangsaen and Chatpichit SorSorToipadriew went full throttle for three intense rounds, but it was Sakolpat who won out in the end.
The Thai star attacked on the front foot from the opening bell, bludgeoning his way forward with heavy punches that snapped his compatriot’s head back.
Despite his relentless offense, Chatpichit grew into the match, and he scored with damaging elbows in rounds two and three.
That showing wasn’t enough, though, and Sakolpat’s aggression earned him the unanimous decision victory to push his overall record to 44-15-2.
Yodlekpet Stays Perfect In ONE By Outlasting Godtfredsen
Yodlekpet “The Destroyer” Or Atchariya overcame a seven-inch height deficit to score a tight split-decision win over Jordan Godtfredsen in their 142-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout.
Godtfredsen used his length to great effect in the early goings, as he kept a stiff jab in Yodlekpet’s face while throwing uppercuts and hooks each time the four-time Muay Thai World Champion stepped forward.
The Thai slowly unlocked his debuting foe’s defenses, however, connecting with heavy combinations as he closed the distance in the second and third rounds.
Yodlekpet’s stronger finish earned him the nod from two of three judges, and he went 4-0 in The Home of Martial Arts and 88-33-3 overall with the win.
Ghazali Earns Third Win In ONE Against Samurai
A battle of teenage Muay Thai talents took place when Johan Ghazali and Samurai Seeopal collided in flyweight action, with the former prevailing after three entertaining rounds.
16-year-old phenom Ghazali dominated the opening frame, utilizing his ripping body shots and blistering combinations, but Samurai managed to fight his way back in the second round.
With everything to play for, “Jojo” pushed his 18-year-old foe to the limit in the final frame, and his efforts earned him the unanimous nod from the judges.
With the win, Ghazali moved to 3-0 in ONE and 22-6 overall.
Ortikov Remains Unbeaten In War With Kaotaem
Aslamjon Ortikov lived up to the hype with an intense debut victory in his 128-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout with Kaotaem Fairtex.
The unbeaten Uzbek phenom dropped his foe with a left hand in a wild first-round exchange and dialed up the pressure from there.
Although Kaotaem obliged in the firefight during rounds two and three, Ortikov’s powerful punching and unorthodox shot selection kept him a step ahead, pushing his slate to a perfect 15-0 via unanimous decision.
Jelevan Smashes Through Looksuan With First-Round Finish
Sulaiman Looksuan looked strong in the opening minute of his flyweight Muay Thai bout with Kabilan Jelevan, but the debuting Malaysian’s punching power soon flipped the script.
Jelevan hurt Looksuan with a right hand that caused him to stumble, but the Myanmar slugger regained his footing.
Not long after, though, the Rentap Muaythai Gym man dropped his rival with a leaping right hand.
He then hit Looksuan with another thudding right to earn the TKO finish at 2:51 of the opening round, extending his record to 25-3-1.
Donchenko Earns First-Round Knockout Of Souza In ONE Debut
Daniel Donchenko arrived at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium with a knockout in mind, and he scored it in the opening round of his lightweight mixed martial arts battle with Gabriel Souza.
The Ukrainian debutant utilized his footwork to keep Souza at bay when the action kicked off. Once he found his range, Donchenko quickly dropped his Brazilian foe and then shot in with hammerfists to secure the win at 1:24 of the first frame.
The victory opened Donchenko’s ONE account perfectly and moved his record to 6-2.
Alvarez Dominates Ghasemi En Route To Second-Round Submission
Carlos Alvarez threw everything at Sadegh Ghasemi in their featherweight mixed martial arts contest until he finally broke through to earn a second-round submission.
The rising Filipino star had his rival in some tight spots on the ground in round one, coming close to a finish with both a guillotine and a triangle choke, and it was only Ghasemi’s grit that saw him reach the bell.
However, when Alvarez latched onto a D’Arce choke in round two, the Iranian had no way out. “Limitless” forced the tap at 1:23 of the frame to earn his second finish in a row at ONE Friday Fights.
