Seksan, Lineker, Ghazali, And More Tear Through The Competition At ONE 168: Denver
On September 6, the world’s largest martial arts organization made its much-anticipated return to U.S. soil with a blockbuster card loaded with high-stakes matchups.
ONE 168: Denver aired live in North American primetime from Ball Arena and delivered no shortage of thrilling battles and epic finishes across both MMA and Muay Thai contests.
Here’s how all the fights played out in “The Mile High City” before Jonathan “The General” Haggerty and “The Kicking Machine” Superlek Kiatmoo9 threw down for the ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Title in the main event.
Seksan Stops Harrison In Frantic Brawl
Just as predicted, fan favorites Seksan “The Man Who Yields To No One” Or Kwanmuang and Liam “Hitman” Harrison delivered an epic slugfest in their 140-pound catchweight Muay Thai showdown.
The Brit landed hard shots in the first few minutes of the contest, but Seksan ate those and applied his trademark, relentless pressure.
He kept that suffocating pace up in the second round as he blasted “Hitman” with massive body kicks and looping punches, knocking Harrison to the canvas twice before landing a fight-winning overhand at 1:49 of round two.
The wild barnburner improved the 35-year-old’s career slate to an incredible 202-75 and secured him a well-deserved US$50,000 performance bonus from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.
Erdogan Runs Through Aung La N Sang In Under Two Rounds
Shamil Erdogan proved his stature as one of the fastest rising stars in the promotion after dominating former two-division ONE MMA World Champion Aung La N Sang in their 213.75-pound catchweight bout.
The 34-year-old Turkish powerhouse quickly rocked “The Burmese Python” with a punch before taking him down and roughing him up with tremendous top control.
Erdogan then switched to striking, peppering the Burmese superstar with punches and kicks. After that, he dragged Aung La N Sang down once again and finished him with punches from the mount at the 2:48 mark of round two.
With the victory, the Krepost Fight Club and Tiger Muay Thai athlete improved his MMA record to 10-0 and then called out three-division king Anatoly Malykhin in his post-fight interview.
Lineker Rips Through Ten Pow In Victorious Muay Thai Debut
Many things in life are uncertain, but one thing isn’t – John Lineker’s “Hands of Stone” are a thing of beauty.
The former ONE Bantamweight MMA World Champion’s trademark weapons powered him to victory against Asa “The American Ninja” Ten Pow in their bantamweight Muay Thai duel.
Lineker barely broke a sweat as he tore through “The American Ninja’s” defense with unforgiving combinations. Hooks, jabs, and body shots came flying in at full ferocity – and he even threw elbows to keep his opposite number at bay.
The Brazilian’s aggression meter had no limits. In the end, a right hook smack on the jaw dropped Ten Pow at 2:50 of the second frame, earning him his first triumph in Muay Thai.
To make matters sweeter, the 34-year-old from OCS Jiu-Jitsu bagged a US$50,000 performance bonus for his statement finish.
Souza Out-Grapples Anderson En Route To Hard-Fought Decision
In atomweight MMA action, 27-year-old Victoria “Vick” Souza spoiled Alyse “Lil’ Savage” Anderson‘s return to the ONE Circle with a grueling, three-round decision victory.
The two fighters spent most of the contest trading deep submissions on the canvas. While the American was able to score with triangle choke and armbar attempts in the early goings, “Vick” stormed back with a wide variety of attacks and dominant grappling as the bout escalated.
After 15 minutes of high-paced action, the Circle-side judges awarded Souza the unanimous decision.
The victory pushed the Double Attack fighter’s career record to 9-2, and she looks to be a real threat in the talent-laden atomweight MMA division.
Fitikefu Dominates Tetsuka In Battle Between Welterweight MMA Contenders
Isi “Doxz” Fitikefu derailed Hiroyuki “The Japanese Beast” Tetsuka’s hype train and took home a unanimous decision win in their welterweight MMA bout.
Save for a few moments where Tetsuka had top control and almost secured an armbar, the 31-year-old never gave his foe an inch, controlling most of the fight at every turn.
Fitikefu used his jab, straight right, and ground game to score his second consecutive win in ONE Championship and end the Japanese man’s five-fight winning run.
At the same time, the fighter from Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Smeaton Grange improved to 9-1 in mixed martial arts and possibly placed himself in the crosshairs of ONE Lightweight and Welterweight MMA World Champion Christian Lee.
Lee Maintains Perfect Record With First-Round Submission Of Cornejo
In his return to lightweight MMA action, Adrian “The Phenom” Lee scored another highlight-reel victory, this time with a first-round submission of Nico “The Steel City Kid” Cornejo.
The Prodigy Training Center athlete slammed his foot on the gas pedal from the get-go, feinting with his speedy hands before dragging Cornejo down and landing on his back.
From there, the 18-year-old showcased his world-class grappling arsenal, swarming with a bevy of strikes before sinking in a rear-naked choke that drew a tap from his foe at 2:37 of the contest.
Lee’s impressive display earned him another US$50,000 performance bonus after his statement debut at ONE 167 in June.
Ghazali Blasts Through Cruz In One Round
Teenage sensation Johan “Jojo” Ghazali put on a dominant performance from start to finish in his 142-pound catchweight Muay Thai clash with Josue “Tuzo” Cruz.
The 17-year-old stalked his foe early and often, forcing Cruz on the back foot while unloading heavy shots to the head, body, and legs.
The Mexican displayed some crafty footwork and landed decent counter-strikes of his own, but “Jojo” threw a show-stopping left hook in the final second of the first round to put “Tuzo” down and out for the count at three minutes, officially.
The highlight-reel knockout improved the pride of Rentap Muaythai Gym’s career record to 25-7 and earned him the second US$50,000 performance bonus of the night.
Estupinan Stops Climaco In Fast-Paced Opener
Johan “Panda Kick” Estupinan kept his unbeaten record intact after stopping Sean “The One” Climaco in a wild flyweight Muay Thai curtain-raiser in Denver.
The pair promised fireworks in this fight, and fireworks is what they delivered, exchanging one knockdown after another in a fiery first round that primed Ball Arena for what was to come.
And in the second round, the 21-year-old Estupinan drove it home. The Colombian knocked down Climaco three times with powerful hooks to get the TKO win at the 1:28 mark.
With the victory, the Team JC Fernandez and Team CSK fighter improved to 25-0 and bagged a US$50,000 performance bonus.
