Reis Snaps Slump With Explosive KO, Ortikov Scores Finish And Fifth Straight Win At ONE Friday Fights 78
ONE Friday Fights 78 kicked off a historic weekend for ONE Championship when it went down inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium on Friday, September 6.
Twelve fascinating contests under Muay Thai, MMA, and kickboxing rules offered up an abundance of thrills and spills for all onlookers, with new talents and known quantities emerging victorious from the fabled striking venue.
Before all eyes point west for ONE 168: Denver in Denver, Colorado, later today, here’s everything that happened live in Asia primetime this week.
Reis Brutally Bodies Pakorn To Return To Winners’ Column
Fabio Reis hasn’t had the easiest of runs in ONE Championship recently, but his determination against Pakorn PK Saenchai in the evening’s bantamweight Muay Thai main event pushed him to an impressive second-round stoppage win.
The Portuguese punisher started the contest at a rapid rate, charging his foe down as often as he could. Pakorn attempted to counter, but Reis’ body shots rained down again and again.
The Thai standout grew in the second round, and he even stumbled Reis at one point. But that eagerness proved to be his downfall in the end, as he walked into a perfect left hook that connected with his body and folded him at 2:04 of round two.
The action was waved off, and Reis was handed the KO win, breaking a three-fight skid and moving him to 23-9 overall in his career.
Komawut Edges Out Siwakorn In High-Paced Thriller
Komawut FA Group secured a split-decision victory over Siwakorn PK Saenchai in an exciting back-and-forth 140-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout.
Both fighters started aggressively, trading identical combinations and using kicks to set up their strikes. However, it was Komawut who gained the early advantage by countering Siwakorn’s high kick with heavy punches.
In round two, Komawut ramped up his offense with a mix of high kicks, punches, and elbows. But Siwakorn absorbed the damage to stay in the fight.
The PK Saenchai Muaythaigym man mounted a late comeback in the final round, pressuring Komawut with fast one-two combinations.
But it wasn’t enough to push him ahead outright, and in the end, two of the judges awarded the fight to Komawut, which improved his record to 51-15.
Khunponnoi Defeats Tanachart By Tough Decision
Khunponnoi Sor Sommai outlasted Tanachart Por Patcharawat in an intense war of attrition in the flyweight Muay Thai ranks.
Tanachart started well by disrupting his Thai compatriot’s forward advances with heavy low kicks in round one. But Khunponnoi couldn’t be deterred.
He marched toward his foe with heavy elbows in round two, and they both worked hard to get an upper hand in the clinch.
Khunponnoi had the edge in a tight final frame that was also dictated up close. The Sor Sommai man scored with heavy knees to the body, which served to earn him a tight unanimous decision win and extend his record to 120-33.
Tonglampoon Ends Topgun With Head Kick KO
Tonglampoon FA Group earned the fourth straight win and third consecutive knockout of his ONE Championship tenure when he dispatched Topgun Kor Kanluak in the second round of their 122-pound catchweight Muay Thai showdown.
Early on, Topgun brought the pressure to his Thai compatriot. He fired rapid flurries of punches in quick succession. But letting him do so appeared to be part of a Tonglampoon’s plan.
Just as the second round began, the 20-year-old baited his foe to get close then dropped him with a stiff right hand. Topgun returned to his feet, but Tonglampoon sent him crashing down again soon after with another short right elbow.
Sensing a finish, the FA Group standout stepped in when the action resumed and ended it all with a huge jumping head kick at 1:55 of round two.
With the KO win, Tonglampoon moved to 4-0 in ONE and 45-12 overall.
Yodkitti Kicks Off Streak In ONE With First-Round Win Over Got
Yodkitti FiatPathum scored an impressive KO victory over Got Taipetburi in the opening frame of their 122-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout.
Got gained early confidence by sweeping Yodkitti to the canvas. Energized by that, he quickly launched a right hook when the action resumed. But his Thai compatriot countered brilliantly with a left elbow that landed flush on his chin and dropped him.
Sensing the momentum shift, Yodkitti pressed forward. He cornered Got and countered a missed right hand with a clean left hook to the body that sent his opponent crashing to the mat again.
This time, Got was unable to beat the count, so Yodkitti was awarded the KO victory at 2:38 of round one, moving him to 2-0 in ONE Championship and 42-10 overall.
Detphupa Edges Past Rodbenz In Epic Three-Rounder
Detphupa ChotBangsaen and Rodbenz PK Saenchai‘s 112-pound catchweight Muay Thai clash was a potential Fight of the Year contender.
Rodbenz struck first, dropping his compatriot with a head kick inside 30 seconds. He then sent him to the canvas again with an elbow as soon as the fight resumed.
It looked all but over for Detphupa, but he finished the round strong with heavy salvos of punches.
The Wor Suksan man stormed back to punish his rival’s body and head with relentless punching in round two, but Rodbenz threw powerful elbows in reply.
He looked to have his Thai countryman hurt in round three, but Detphupa dropped him with a massive counter right hand that closed the gap.
With all three rounds in the books, two judges sided with Detphupa, and he took the win by split decision to go 31-12 in his career.
Ortikov Overwhelms Yodthongthai For Fifth Straight Win
Unbeaten star Aslamjon Ortikov continued to show his star quality by finishing veteran striker Yodthongthai Sor Sommai in their catchweight 130-pound Muay Thai contest.
The 21-year-old held the center of the ring from the opening bell and landed thudding low kicks on his Thai foe. His strikes only grew bigger and braver as the round progressed, and he connected with multiple front kicks.
Ortikov heaped on the pressure again in the second frame and landed combinations over and over en route to dropping Yodthongthai with a counter left hook at the end of the round.
Though the Sor Sommai man survived to the final stanza, the win was clearly there for the taking. Ortikov knew it, and he secured the finish via a fatal left hook at the 2:15 mark to move 5-0 in ONE and 19-0 overall.
Shigemori Stuns Shin With Second-Round Knockout
Yota Shigemori needed just one moment to secure a stunning KO victory over Shin “Checkmate” Dong Hyun in their 140-pound catchweight Muay Thai battle.
Shin looked sharp early as he overwhelmed his Japanese opponent with a spinning backfist followed by a spinning right kick then kept him on the defensive throughout the first round.
In the second stanza, Shigemori worked to close the distance. But Shin countered with quick jabs. Undeterred, the Cross Point Kichijoji man stepped forward once more, and he set up the finish from there.
After drawing his South Korean opponent’s attention with low kicks, Shigemori unleashed a devastating right straight that sent Shin crashing to the canvas.
He couldn’t beat the eight-count, so Shigemori was handed the KO win at 2:43 of round two, which improved his record to 42-8.
Carlsson Hurts Durable Phoebe Lo En Route To Decision Win
Moa “The X-Guard” Carlsson showed her versatility to take an exciting unanimous decision win over Tsz Ching Phoebe Lo in their atomweight Muay Thai battle.
Phoebe Lo pressed behind kicks in round one, but “The X-Guard” replied with stiff straight punches to get the edge.
In round two, Carlsson went on the front foot and found success with her boxing. The Swede hurt Phoebe Lo with a right high kick and elbows, and the bell had to save the Hong Kong star from the onslaught.
Phoebe Lo had some success with elbows in the final frame, but Carlsson’s accurate hands throughout the affair made the difference, as she took the unanimous decision win in her ONE debut to move to 14-5 overall.
De Leu Stays Perfect Against Naoya In ONE Debut
Gianny De Leu made sure his name was known in his first ONE Championship outing against Kuroda Naoya.
The unbeaten star utilized his signature unorthodox approach and rapid-fire pedigree to immediately put his Japanese foe on the back foot in the 119-pound catchweight kickboxing affair.
De Leu threw multiple front kicks and spinning back fists then dropped Naoya late in the opening round, and he struck with the same intensity in the second frame, continuing to hit his man with everything he had.
The Belgian star even looked to be close to a finish in the dying seconds of round two, but Naoya survived to the bell.
The Hades Workout gym athlete couldn’t do the same in the final stanza, however. “The Lion Of Flanders” was relentless, and he closed out the fight at the 0:27 mark via another brutal barrage of strikes to move to 23-0 in his career.
Abdurashidov Demolishes Tilenov In Round Two
Idris “Aggressor” Abdurashidov made a strong statement in his ONE Championship debut, with a second-round knockout victory over Kazakbai Tilenov in bantamweight MMA.
The Russian slugger showcased his striking power early, staggering Tilenov multiple times with heavy shots in the opening round.
Knowing his opponent had found form on the feet, Tilenov attempted to bring the action to the canvas when the second frame kicked off.
Unfortunately, that proved to be his undoing, as Abdurashidov escaped his grasp with ease and then clipped him with strikes as he returned to his feet.
In the flurry, a right hand connected with Tilenov’s chin and left him unable to continue, so the referee stepped in and stopped the contest at 0:22 of round two.
With the TKO win, Abdurashidov secured his fourth career victory.
Saclag’s KOs Lee With Punishing Striking Display
Jean Claude Saclag announced himself to ONE Championship’s global fan base in style with a stunning first-round knockout win against Lee Jun Young.
The Team Lakay athlete started fast in their flyweight MMA clash, attacking his South Korean foe with heavy punches and kicks.
Saclag wobbled Lee with a flush hook kick to the jaw and maintained his intensity on the hunt for the finish.
He found it via a barrage of punches that the Filipino punctuated with a crushing left hook to earn a debut KO win at 1:34.
