Explosive Knockouts Light Up ONE: MASTERS OF FATE Prelims

Fans inside the Mall Of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines were entertained from the first bell as the prelims at ONE: MASTERS OF FATE delivered some outstanding action.

If you missed any of the mixed martial arts or Muay Thai match-ups, catch up with the best of the action from every contest right here.

Naito Stays On Track With Great Grappling Display

Pongsiri “The Smiling Assassin” Mitsatit had few answers for the grappling of Yoshitaka “Nobita” Naito in the featured bout of the preliminary card.

The former ONE Strawweight World Champion stuck tight to the Thai striker for the majority of their three-round battle, and seemed to be able to hit a takedown from any position to neutralize his rival’s most dangerous weapons.

“Nobita” came close to an armbar in the second round, and although Mitsatit escaped, he could not stay out of his rival’s clutches for long, and he spent much of the final stanza defending from his back.

All three judges turned in scorecards for Naito, who improved to 15-3 with his second consecutive win, and stayed on course toward the top of his division once again.

Kongsak Puts On Muay Thai Clinic

“Left Savage” Kongsak PK.Saenchaimuaythaigym stayed true to his moniker to claim a dominant unanimous decision victory over Han Zi Hao in their bantamweight Muay Thai match-up.

The Thai veteran opened up with his left kicks to Han’s lead leg and body, and maintained a composed defense to stop the Chinese knockout artist finding a way into range with single and double jabs.

“Left Savage” added some hard straight lefts into his output across rounds two and three, on top of his thudding left kick to the body. He closed the distance behind his punches to shut out Han’s powerful boxing, and cruised to victory to extend his record to 184-39-2.

Catalan Hits Highlight-Reel Head Kick

Fans in the Mall Of Asia Arena were treated to the most action-packed bout and most spectacular finish of the prelims when the Philippines’ own Robin “The Ilonggo” Catalan faced Gustavo ”El Gladiador” Balart.

Both men were happy to exchange strikes for most of the opening round, but the Cuban showed off his world-class Olympic pedigree on a couple of occasions – including with a high-amplitude belly-to-belly takedown – but could not keep Catalan down for long.

The pace slowed a fraction at the start of the second stanza, but there was barely a break in the action as Catalan fired right body kicks to counter his rival’s boxing. One small adjustment to that strategy brought the finish 17 seconds before the bell, as “The Ilonggo” went high and planted his shin straight onto his rival’s chin.

Balart immediately went stiff and fell face-first onto the canvas to give Catalan the 10th win of his career.

Tukkatatong Rips Left Kicks to Take Decision

Tukkatatong Petpayathai returned to action after a 14-month layoff, yet still never missed a beat against Japan’s Hiroaki “Kaibutsukun” Suzuki in a bantamweight Muay Thai bout.

The Thai dictated the opening frame with his left kick to the body and legs, as well as a strong left hand over the top of his rival’s right. Suzuki responded with flurries of punches and rattled his opposite number in the dying seconds of the round.

That success inspired his game plan for the rest of the match as he tried to catch kicks and return fire with boxing combinations, but he could not stop the Evolve representative landing repeatedly with his left roundhouse, which built up damage until the final bell.

Two of the judges favored the Thai’s accumulation of strikes, and he was awarded a split decision to go 3-0 in ONE Super Series and push his overall record to 243-33-2.

Body Blow Unlocks Debut Win For Kim

“The Fighting God” Kim Jae Woong almost finished his featherweight clash with Rafael “Indio” Nunes in the opening moments as he unleashed his powerful right cross, and then almost forced the referee to stop the contest as he stuffed a takedown and unleashed his hammerfists.

Nunes survived, and then turned things around as he got a takedown to control the action on the ground, took the back, and secured a rear-naked choke, but his South Korean rival was saved by the bell.

That was as good as it would get for the Brazilian, as he was comprehensively outstruck in the second stanza. The taekwondo black belt threw few kicks, but he had success with a strategy that saw him land hard punches to the head, and then go to the body when “Indio” tried to keep a tight, high guard.

His strategy brought the finish at the start of the final round as “The Fighting God” slipped a jab and ripped a beautiful left hook into Nunes’ midsection. As the Brazilian backed away, all he could do was cover up as he was hammered with knees until the contest was stopped with 38 seconds on the clock. Kim’s successful ONE debut lifted his pro slate to 10-3.

Kim Hits 68-Second Uppercut KO

In a flyweight bout, Kim Kyu Sung scored a first-round knockout over Akihiro “Superjap” Fujisawa with a picture-perfect uppercut.

The South Korean star utilized his reach advantage well to keep Fujisawa on the end of his jab, and when the Japanese athlete tried to blast his way in with big left hooks, he walked straight into Kim’s trap.

The Evolve man landed a precise and powerful right uppercut to the jaw as his rival came forward, which dropped “Superjap” to the canvas and ended the contest after just 68 seconds. That gave Kim his first win in ONE and pushed his overall record to 10-3.

Mainam Makes Flawless ONE Debut

In the evening’s opening bout, India’s Roshan Mainam took control of his debut in The Home Of Martial Arts against Khon Sichan inside the opening minute when he hit a double-leg takedown from his knees.

The Cambodian tried to stop the wrestling specialist from advancing his position, but he passed to side control and then into mount without too much difficulty.

After some hard ground and pound, Mainam switched his approach to go for a submission, and the 23-year-old got the tap via Americana at the 3:22 mark to improve his record to 4-2.

Read more: MASTERS OF FATE: Live Updates