Shadow And Bikrev Stun Legends As Meksen And Grigorian Cruise To Victories At ONE Friday Fights 92
ONE Championship closed its roster of events for 2024 with a historic evening of Muay Thai and kickboxing action inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on December 20.
ONE Friday Fights 92: Sitthichai vs. Shadow featured 12 thrilling contests across the striking arts, and there were knockouts and nail-biting matchups from start to finish.
Familiar faces prevailed, while others fell at the hands of the next generation of warriors coming up in the world’s largest martial arts organization.
In case you missed any of it, let’s take a look at everything that went down live in Asia primetime.
Shadow Hands Sitthichai A Three-Round Beatdown
Shadow Singha Mawynn orchestrated the most impressive display of his career to date when he bested striking legend Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong in the night’s featherweight Muay Thai main event.
Shadow battered the #3-ranked divisional contender’s left arm with crushing right kicks from the start and lit him up with hooks and straights when he dropped his guard.
Sitthichai did get things going from the second round onwards, but the eight-time Muay Thai and kickboxing World Champion was simply outclassed at every turn by his Thai compatriot.
Shadow controlled every exchange in the third frame, and a late eight-count off a brutal straight right made the judges call relatively straightforward when the action came to an end.
They awarded the Rajadamnern Stadium Muay Thai World Champion the unanimous decision win, which stood as his fourth win in a row in ONE Championship and pushed his promotional record to 4-1 and overall slate to 79-13.
Suakim Continues Impressive Run With Knockout Win Over Panrit
Suakim Sor Jor Tongprajin and Panrit Lukjaomaesaiwaree delivered an electrifying battle in their 140.4-pound catchweight Muay Thai firefight, but it was the former who proved unstoppable.
Both men showcased blistering speed and power right from the opening bell. Suakim’s precise elbows clashed with Panrit’s punishing right hands, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats.
Suakim managed to crack the code when the fight entered the second round, as he dropped Panrit during a furious exchange.
The three-division Lumpinee Stadium World Champion then displayed his mastery by evading his Thai compatriot’s attacks and cornering him against the ropes. There, he unleashed two devastating left punches to flatline Panrit at 2:57 of round two.
The win marked Suakim’s third straight victory in ONE Friday Fights, and it improved his record to 152-59.
Songchainoi Starches Yodnumchai in Brutal Fashion
Songchainoi Kiatsongrit extended his perfect streak in ONE Championship with a sublime second-round knockout of Yodnumchai Fairtex in their atomweight Muay Thai showdown.
Songchainoi patiently worked behind his counters and baited Yodnumchai to lunge straight into his sharp straight rights in the opening round.
When the action moved into the second frame, the Kiatsongrit Muay Thai Gym athlete shifted his game plan and threw heavy shots that broke through his foe’s guard.
After rocking Yodnumchai with a stiff straight right, he threw a barrage of uppercuts, then sent the Fairtex Training Center star to the shadow realm with a brutal right hand.
The knockout win came at the 1:18 mark of round two. It pushed Songchainoi’s promotional record to a perfect 8-0 and 58-18 overall.
Bikrev Scores Upset With Second-Round KO Of Panpayak
Egor Bikrev stayed perfect in his career and silenced the deafening crowd inside Lumpinee when he scored a massive knockout win over ”The Angel Warrior” Panpayak Jitmuangnon in their flyweight Muay Thai showdown.
Panpayak attempted to set the tone with his left kicks early on, but his undefeated Russian foe sent him down for the count with a straight right in return.
Though Bikrev reminded his foe of his potent fists, the seven-time Muay Thai World Champion charged him down with his go-to weapon again in round two. But, unfortunately, that led to his demise.
Bikrev countered the leg strikes with a right overhand and a left hook to put “The Angel Warrior” to sleep at 1:08 of the second frame. The KO win moved him to 8-0 and stood as one of the biggest upsets of 2024.
Dayakaev Obliterates Sibmuen In 35 Seconds
Abdulla Dayakaev needed mere seconds to analyze Sibmuen “Coach Nay’s” movement before delivering a lightning-fast knockout in their 147.2-pound catchweight Muay Thai clash.
Like a lion stalking its prey, the 22-year-old Russian used sharp footwork to find the perfect angle. Once he did, it was over for the Thai star.
Dayakaev unleashed a left straight, followed by a right cross to the thigh that exposed Sibmuen’s defense. From there, he landed a crushing left punch to the jaw that dropped him to the mat.
“Coach Nay” tried to get back up, but was unable to continue, so the referee waved off the bout at 0:35 of the first round.
The win brought Dayakaev back to the winners’ column, marked his fifth victory in ONE Friday Fights, and improved his record to 12-2
Rak Slices Up Koko To Score Nasty KO Win
He may have taken his time, but Rak Erawan made sure to capture the stoppage win over Koko Sor Sommai in their atomweight Muay Thai clash.
Both fighters eased into the action slowly, with neither man keen to throw the big shots in the opening minute.
Rak was the first to push the tempo, launching into a flurry in an attempt to throw his foe off balance. But Koko weathered the storm and countered with a combination to land a sneaky uppercut.
After working into the clinch, Rak found the slimmest of openings and threw a textbook eight elbow that cut open his fellow Thai’s left eyebrow in the dying seconds of the first round.
As a result, Koko failed to rise from his stool for the second round, so the stoppage was recorded as 3:00 of the first frame. The win was Rak’s under the ONE Championship banner, and it moved him to 76-13 overall.
Grigorian’s Merciless Aggression Puts Zahidi Away
Marat Grigorian is never short on action, and he brought it in abundance en route to a KO win over Abdelali “Black Diamond” Zahidi in their 159-pound catchweight kickboxing battle.
The #2-ranked featherweight kickboxing contender gave Zahidi no room from the opening bell. He forced him onto the ropes and picked his shots perfectly to assert his dominance.
When the second canto kicked off, Grigorian made it look like target practice. He effortlessly roamed into enemy territory with straights, overhands, and uppercuts to touch up his Moroccan foe.
The Armenian star then dropped Zahidi for the count with a looping overhand right. And seconds after the restart, he stormed forward with a final salvo and straight left to end proceedings at the 2:36 mark.
With the knockout win, Grigorian improved his resume to 68-14.
Watcharaphon Extends Knockout Streak, Ends Maisangkum’s Unbeaten Run
Watcharaphon PK Saenchai and Maisangkum Sor Yingcharoenkarnchang delivered fireworks in their explosive 121-pound catchweight Muay Thai clash, but it was the former who came away with the blistering win.
Both fighters shot in with venom right from the opening bell. They exchanged low kicks, elbows, and body shots to get the crowd inside Lumpinee on their feet.
However, just as the intensity was peaking, Watcharaphon unleashed a sharp three-punch combination that floored his Thai compatriot.
Maisangkum couldn’t continue, so Watcharaphon was handed the win at 2:22 of round one, ending his foe’s six-fight unbeaten streak in the process.
The victory was the PK Saenchai Muaythaigym man’s third consecutive first-round finish at ONE Friday Fights, and it improved his slate to 170-40 overall.
Liu Stuns Noiri In Dominant ONE Debut
Liu Mengyang scored arguably the biggest win of his career over Masaaki Noiri in their featherweight kickboxing clash.
The ONE Championship newcomer shattered Noiri’s calm early by dropping him with a looping right cross in the opening minute. The Japanese star tried to force his offense in the pocket in return, but Liu landed several uppercuts to finish the frame strong.
Despite absorbing a barrage of body shots in the second round, the 6-foot-tall Liu neglected to utilize his range advantage and continued to trade with Noiri up close.
The two-division K-1 champion worked Liu’s midsection in the third frame, but the 21-year-old showed his grit and countered with push kicks to keep the distance and earn him the unanimous decision win, which pushed his record to 33-6.
Meksen Outclasses Kana For 104th Career Win
Seven-time Muay Thai and kickboxing World Champion Anissa “C18” Meksen put on a vintage performance to dispatch Kana in their fast-paced atomweight kickboxing showdown.
The striking veteran kept her foe at range in the opening round and delivered combinations down the middle every time she tried to cut the distance.
Kana was forced to engage in close quarters in the second stanza, and the four-time K-1 world champion was at the mercy of Meksen’s piston-like jabs, knees, and kicks whenever she advanced.
“C18” set her sights on disrupting Kana’s rhythm in the final round, and she threw dangerous punch-kick combinations throughout to claim the well-deserved unanimous decision win and move her career slate to 104-7.
Shimon Shines In ONE Debut With TKO Victory Over Rittidet
Shimon arrived in ONE Championship in style with a spectacular TKO win over Rittidet Sor Sommai in 134-pound catchweight Muay Thai.
Both fighters traded fierce combinations early, but the Japanese debutant landed a sharp elbow and crushing knee and followed up with a powerful right hook to close the first round in his favor.
Rittidet started the second frame aggressively, but that backfired when his opponent countered with two left hooks to send him to the canvas.
The Thai warrior beat the eight count, but Shimon shot in again with a punishing right knee. From there, he connected with a thunderous right hand and lethal elbows, forcing the referee to stop the contest at 0:39 of round two.
The TKO win pushed the 20-year-old phenom’s record to 21-1.
Osmanov Maintains Perfect Streak Against Bendon
Elbrus Osmanov extended his perfect career slate with a methodical unanimous decision win over Nathan Bendon in their bantamweight kickboxing matchup.
After absorbing a huge right hand that knocked his mouthguard loose early on, Osmanov worked behind his counter and snapped back at the lunging Bendon in the first round.
He continued to rely on his counters in the second frame and nearly floored his British foe with a slick spinning back fist. But Bendon dodged it in the nick of time to escape with minimal damage.
Although Osmanov slowed his pace down in the third stanza, he still found range and broke through Bendon’s guard, and this was enough to get the nod and push his record to 6-0 in ONE Championship and 12-0 overall.
