Saemapetch Stuffs Kaonar, Calls Out Haggerty As Knockouts Rain Down At ONE Friday Fights 30
ONE Championship’s weekly offering inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, delivered another epic lineup of martial arts magic on Friday, August 25.
ONE Friday Fights 30, which went out live in Asia primetime, exceeded expectations from start to finish, as some of the world’s best MMA and Muay Thai practitioners showcased their grit, determination, and heart to overcome anything standing across from them.
The 12-fight bill delivered nine highlight-reel finishes and three toe-to-toe classics, and here’s a recap of everything that went down.
Saemapetch Cruises To First-Round KO Win Over Kaonar
Former ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Title challenger Saemapetch Fairtex closed out an action-packed evening with a crushing first-round knockout of Kaonar Sor Jor Thongprajin.
After baiting his fellow Thai into overcommitting in the attack, the Fairtex Training Center representative unloaded with a precise counter left hook that sent his foe to the canvas.
Kaonar barely regained his footing when the match resumed, while on the opposite end, Saemapetch looked primed to let his foe taste another round of power.
True enough, the striking superstar unloaded with a four-piece combination that ended with a dynamite left hand to bring an end to the contest at just 2:09 of the first round.
Saemapetch upped his record to 126-19 with the dominant victory, and he called out divisional king Jonathan Haggerty in his post-fight interview with Mitch Chilson.
Aliff Shines In Three-Round Domination Of Yangdam
Aliff Sor Dechapan and Yangdam Sor Tor Hiewbangsaen lit up Lumpinee Stadium in 122-pound Muay Thai action, but it was the former’s pinpoint accuracy that saw him leave with the win.
Aliff came out with brutality in mind as he charged his foe with high-flying knees and kicks. Though he landed again and again, Yangdam showed his grit by standing firm.
The Thai-Malaysian star remained on the front foot throughout the second round, though, and he wobbled Yangdam at will as he hunted for the finish.
But he couldn’t find it, and Yangdam began to fire back in the third round.
It appeared that Aliff’s gas tank was running low as the clock ticked down, but his body of work throughout the contest was enough to earn the judges’ nod in the end.
The 19-year-old phenom scored his third win in ONE with the unanimous decision call, and he moved to 56-7 overall.
Worapon Scores Second-Round KO Win Over Slatan
Since joining ONE earlier this year, Worapon Paidong has always wanted to pin his name alongside promotional greats like Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Tawanchai PK Saenchai.
In his 140-pound catchweight Muay Thai clash with newcomer Slatan Jitmuangnon, the Thai star moved a step closer to that goal.
Both men abandoned their game plans when the opening bell sounded and threw relentless and reckless attacks.
In the second round, though, Worapon floored Slatan with a left elbow. The Jitmuangnon athlete jumped to his feet to answer the count, and he waved on his foe – but that proved to be a fatal mistake.
The Paidong Gym standout unloaded a furious combination capped off with a high kick that wrapped around Slatan’s neck, crumpling him where he stood.
The referee halted the action at 1:47 of round two, and Worapon’s knockout performance earned him his 62nd career win.
Songchainoi’s Right Hand Flattens Chokdee In Round Two
Songchainoi Kiatsongrit refused to take his foot off the gas as soon as his 116-pound catchweight Muay Thai battle with Chokdee Maxjandee kicked off, and that drive pushed him to a second-round knockout win.
The 22-year-old used his hands to fend off his Thai countryman and followed up with more combinations from close quarters. He continued his onslaught as the match progressed, and it didn’t take him long to string together the match-winning moment.
An inch-perfect counter knee left Chokdee dazed, so Songchainoi swarmed in with punches in bunches and a final right to the face to earn the finish at 1:45 of the second stanza.
The Kiatsongrit standout earned his second successive knockout in ONE with the win, and pushed his overall slate to 53-18.
Chatanan Sleeps Haodong In Back-And-Forth Slugfest
Chatanan Sor Jor Joyprajin and Haodong Jitmuangnon let loose in their 129-pound catchweight Muay Thai firefight, but the former managed to deliver on his promise to stop his Thai compatriot in the second frame.
Haodong began the battle on the front foot and landed the better strikes in the opening exchanges. Chatanan refused to be counted out, though, and he took advantage of his opponent’s hubris when the bout entered round two.
As Haodong settled into the brawl, the An Sukhumvit representative bit down on his gumshield and connected with a devastating right hand that stunned the debuting star.
Chatanan knew the win was coming, and he closed out the contest with a blistering left hand to score his second finish in ONE at 2:39 of round two and move his record to 75-25.
Chalawan Bounces Back With Show-Stopping KO Of Kaoklai
For the 4 minutes and 24 seconds that it lasted, the strawweight Muay Thai fight between Chalawan Ngorbangkapi and Kaoklai Chor Hapayak could’ve gone either way.
In round one alone, each man scored an eight-count on the other, with Chalawan dropping Kaoklai with a right hand first and Kaoklai sending Chalawan down via a left hook.
Things only intensified in the second frame as Kaoklai decked his Sor Sommai adversary with a thumping left hook. But Chalawan returned to his feet and came back for revenge, ransacking his Thai compatriot with a multi-punch combination that almost separated Kaoklai’s torso from his legs.
The LookEsan Fighting standout answered the referee, but just barely, and Chalawan jumped right back in to finish proceedings with a right hook.
The win improved the 29-year-old’s all-striking record to 108-26.
Kongklai’s Knees Wipe Out Vitez
In 139-pound catchweight Muay Thai action, Kongklai Annymuaythai weathered heavy artillery from Silviu Vitez in the opening round to flip the script and earn a second successive TKO win inside Lumpinee Stadium.
After reading “Hitman’s” strategy, Kongklai cracked open his rival’s defense behind punch-kick combinations.
When he found a way to close the distance, the Thai sensation unloaded in the clinch – where the finish soon came.
A knee from Kongklai connected flush on Vitez’s chin, sending him to the mat, and the AnnyMuayThai athlete followed up with another barrage of knees to seal the deal at 2:42 of the second round, improving his slate to 78-17.
Ogasawara Crushes Yodwittaya In Under A Minute
Eisaku Ogasawara planned to start fast in his 132-pound catchweight Muay Thai meeting with Yodwittaya Petchompoo, and he did just that.
The Japanese star took full advantage of Yodwittaya’s attempt to get close to him after the opening bell, and he landed a lethal counter right hook to stun his Thai foe.
Sensing blood, Ogasawara followed up with the fateful right hand to end proceedings after just 31 seconds of action.
The debut win in ONE moved the 27-year-old’s professional slate to 44-8 overall.
Bravo Blasts Denpanom En Route To Second-Round Knockout
Ricardo Bravo scored a ruthless finish in his 165-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout with Denpanom Pran26 to announce himself on the global stage.
Thunderous punching combinations and forward-marching aggression were the debuting Argentinian’s best tools from the get-go, and he consistently forced his Thai opponent onto his back foot.
The finish came at the 1:48 mark of the second frame when a thunderous straight right hand from Bravo sent Denpanom down and out for the count.
The 23-year-old striking phenom improved his career record to 25-2 with the win, and he looks to be a serious threat at the highest levels of Muay Thai in ONE.
Petgarfield Bests Ogawa After Three-Round War
Petgarfield Jitmuangnon would have had better luck bending iron with his punches and elbows, as Sho Ogawa’s chin refused to crack in their 138-pound catchweight Muay Thai contest – but he managed to score the win nonetheless.
Both men went berserk in search of a highlight-reel finish from the opening bell. Ogawa rocked Petgarfield early with a stiff left, but it only served to fire up the Thai striker and increase his output.
Petgarfield attacked and connected with a series of uppercuts, elbows, and straights, but his Japanese foe survived until the final bell.
In the end, though, all three judges awarded the Jitmuangnon Gym standout the unanimous decision, and he got his promotional tenure off to a perfect start.
Amirzhanov Sleeps Farhadi Within 90 Seconds
Gadzhimurad Amirzhanov said it was his dream to compete in ONE, and he made the most of the opportunity in his promotional debut against Mehraban Farhadi.
The Russian combatant was on the back foot initially in the welterweight MMA affair. But after reversing Farhadi’s early takedown, Amirzhanov instinctively snatched onto an anaconda choke to submit his Iranian foe at 1:27 of the first frame.
Amirzhanov picked up the fourth victory of his professional MMA career with the victory.
Abdurakhmonov Overpowers Lim To Score Decision Win
The evening kicked off with a dominant showing by rising star Mukhammadumar Abdurakhmonov in his 163-pound catchweight MMA clash with Gwanwoo Lim.
The Uzbek athlete was in the driver’s seat for the vast majority of the three-round affair, implementing a suffocating clinch and grappling attack while punishing his foe with heavy strikes whenever possible.
While his South Korean foe nearly locked onto a kimura shoulder lock in the closing minute, it was too little, too late for Lim, and the judges awarded the unanimous decision to Abdurakhmonov.
The debut win kicked off the 22-year-old wrestling specialist’s ONE tenure in style.
