Author: James Goyder

ONE: “Battleground III” is being broadcast on Friday. The main event sees Sittichai Sitsongpeenong matched with Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym in a Muay Thai bout after both fighters saw their original opponents pull out.

The event will also feature the promotional debut of Banma Duoji. The Chinese strawweight faces former champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke in a battle between an experienced campaigner and an up and coming young prospect.

Purev Otgonjargal vs Ben Royle (Bantamweight)

Purev Otgonjargal (7-1) is riding a seven fight winning streak and all seven of those wins have come by way of submission, primarily chokes. He throws the odd kick but doesn’t appear to be interested in striking.

Ben Royle (5-1) is also a submission specialist who doesn’t appear particularly interested in striking. He is a southpaw but is very flat footed but he does have power in his punches as he proved on his ONE Championship debut.

Tial Thang vs. Song Min Jong (Bantamweight)

Tial Thang (3-0) is a seasoned wrestler who started out in his native Myanmar and continued to compete in the US. He looks comfortable in the pocket but is only there to take the fight down, the Burmese bantamweight doesn’t throw many strikes.

Song Min Jong (11-8) won the Road FC flyweight title and then took four years off. He is by far the best opponent Thang has faced so far and switches stance seamlessly, landing some solid kicks.

Dae Hwan Kim vs. Xie Wei (Flyweight)

Dae Hwan Kim (15-7-1) comes from a Muay Thai background but is very dangerous with rear naked chokes. The Korean has dropped decisions in his last three bouts and will look to be more aggressive here.

Xie Wei (7-3) appears to have a Muay Thai striking style with a wide stance and a high guard. He is not afraid to let his hands go but there’s question mark over his ground game.

Bi Nguyen vs. Jenelyn Olsim (Atomweight)

Bi Nguyen (6-6) tends to get involved in split decisions because she is a Muay Thai fighter with very little power. The Vietnamese American can hit opponents but she struggles to hurt them and doesn’t throw a high enough volume of strikes to consistently convince the judges.

Jenelyn Olsim (4-3) looked very impressive on her ONE Championship debut. She has the Team Lakay wushu striking style but is also solid on the ground as she demonstrated with her submission win over the more experienced Maira Mazar.

Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke vs. Banma Duoji (Strawweight)

Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke (11-6) was the first ever ONE Championship strawweight champion and seamlessly blended his extensive Muay Thai experience with his new found submission skills. The 42 year old’s chin has become questionable, he has been one punch KOd twice recently, and he is 20 years older than his opponent here.

Banma Duoji (13-1) will be making his promotional debut. He is six inches taller than Dejdamrong and is a southpaw but his striking looks very limited.

Muay Thai: Sittichai Sitsongpeenong vs. Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym (Featherweight)

Sittichai Sitsongpeenong will make an unscheduled return to the sport of Muay Thai at ONE: ‘Battleground’ Part III. He has been training for a kickboxing contest and has been competing exclusively under that code for nearly seven years.

Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym is one of the top fighters in the stadiums today but is moving up 10lbs for this contest at late notice. The ONE Championship ruleset limits clinching and the fighters will wear small gloves, so this seems to favour the bigger man.

The entire ONE: “Battleground” Part III fight card will be available to view free in some territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.

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ONE: Battleground’ II is being broadcast on Friday and it will feature a pivotal lightweight fight between TUF China winner Zhang Lipeng and two time title holder Eduard Folayang. The former has been on top form since leaving the UFC while the latter is on the worst losing streak of his career.

The all MMA card will also feature a promotional debut for undefeated Norwegian giant Thomas Narmo. He faces ageless kickboxing specialist Alain Ngalani in a heavyweight fight.

Otgonbaatar Nergui vs. Rahul Raju (Lightweight)

Otgonbaatar Nergui (5-2-1) has a wide stance and likes to walk forwards, applying pressure to opponents. He has some solid punches and spinning strikes, it’s difficult to gauge how good his wrestling is but he is dangerous with submissions.

Rahul Raja (7-6) has two ONE Championship wins and they both came by way of rear naked choke. He is definitely more comfortable on the ground and has been either knocked out or knocked down in his last two appearances.

Eko Roni Saputra vs. Liu Peng Shuai (Flyweight)

Eko Roni Saputra (4-1) wrestled at a national level. He is riding a four fight winning streak and all four wins have come inside a round, with the Indonesian generally reliant on his takedowns to win.

Liu Peng Shuai (6-6) uses a lot of kicks and can fight either orthodox or southpaw. He couldn’t stuff the takedowns of Saputra’s teammate Roshan Mainam last time out and faces a very similar challenge here.

Thomas Narmo vs. Alain Ngalani (Heavyweight)

Thomas Narmo (4-0) is a huge heavyweight but the former ice hockey opponent’s four previous opponent’s have zero wins between them. He faces a big step up here and the Norwegian will need an early takedown if he wants to survive.

As always Alain Ngalani (4-6-0-1) will want to turn this into a striking battle. His speed and power are staggering and if he can keep it standing he is one of the best in the division but if an opponent can take him down he generally loses.

Alex Silva vs. Miao Li Tao (Strawweight)

Alex Silva (9-6) has some solid body kicks but will always be primarily a grappler. The BJJ black belt has been the distance seven times in his career and lost on six of those occasions, he either wins with a submission or not at all.

Miao Li Tao (6-3) faces an Evolve MMA fighter for the fourth time, he has already beaten two of Silva’s teammates. His takedown defence is good, he is fast in the scrambles and will attack constantly which could be a problem for Silva if he can’t get the fight to the ground straightaway.

Eduard Folayang vs. (Lightweight)

Eduard Folayang (22-11) is on the longest losing streak of his career and the 36 year old is in desperate need of a win. He has the wushu style and is aggressive with some devastating kicks but has been submitted three times in his last six fights.

Zhang Lipeng (30-11-2) is very comfortable on the ground and has numerous submission wins on his record. He is not much of a wrestler and prefers to stay in the pocket and trade but if an opening presents itself during a scramble he will not hesitate to attack with submissions.

The entire ONE: “Battleground” Part II fight card will be available to view free in some territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.

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ONE: “Battleground” is set for the Singapore Indoor Stadium this Friday. As usual there will be six fights on the card with Aung La Nsang taking on Leandro Ataides in a middleweight non-title bout.

The closed-doors event will be broadcast live and also features the return of Chen Rui who put on one of the most entertaining fights of 2021. He has been matched against Brave veteran Jeremy Pacatiw.

Victoria Lee vs. Wang Luping (Atomweight)

Victoria Lee (1-0) is the younger sister of reigning ONE Championship titleholders Angela Lee and Christian Lee. She is very strong on the ground but looked uncomfortable in the striking exchanges last time out.

Wang Luping (3-2) is a wrestler and grappler based on the limited amount of footage available. None of her wins have come at the expense of good calibre opposition.

Chen Rui vs. Jeremy Pacatiw (Bantamweight)

Chen Rui (9-2) has won four out of his six ONE Championship fights. His last fight was an all-out war that will go down as one of the best of the year in Asian MMA.

If Jeremy Pacatiw (10-4) wants to make this a striking battle he will find a willing partner. His attack is more punch orientated than most Team Lakay fighters but if the Filipino has been paying attention to Rui’s previous fights he might try to get the action down.

Ritu Phogat vs. Lin Heqin (Atomweight)

Also in atomweight action is Ritu Phogat (4-1). The Indian wrestler will be looking to rebound from her first ever defeat and needs to start capitalizing on her takedowns with either ground-and-pound or submission attempts.

Lin Heqin (14-2-1) returns after a two-year absence and her striking is vastly superior to Phogat’s. This contest will probably come down to whether or not the experienced Chinese fighter knows how to stuff a takedown and keep it standing.

Gustavo Balart vs. Ryuto Sawada (Flyweight)

Gustavo Balart (8-4) wrestled at the Olympics in 2004 but stands just 4’11” and has found the going tough since signing with ONE Championship. He has promised to showcase his boxing this time around.

Ryuto Sawada (14-6-1) also has a wrestling background although he never reached Balart’s heights in that sport. His wins typically come by way of either submission or decision so if the Cuban really does decide to wrestle defensively and turn this into a boxing match it will be interesting to see how Sawada copes.

Aung La Nsang vs. Leandro Ataides (Middleweight)

Aung La Nsang (26-12-0-1) is on a losing streak for the first time in his ONE Championship career. He is coming off back-to-back losses to Reinier de Ridder but if takedown defense is a weakness the Burmese fighter remains one of the most dangerous strikers in the division.

Leandro Ataides (11-4) is also coming off a decision loss to de Ridder. The Brazilian has been on the ONE Championship roster since 2013 and is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt with one-punch knockout power but striking is not his specialty and his wrestling is nowhere near as good as de Ridder’s.

Muay Thai: Sam-A Gaiyanghadao (c) vs. Prajanchai PKSaenchaigym (For strawweight title)

Sam-A Gaiyanghadao is an experienced southpaw with a devastating left kick. But since signing with ONE Championship he has never been matched with a top Thai opponent from the stadium scene, let alone one who is very much in his prime.

Prajanchai PKSaenchaigym won the Lumpinee super bantamweight belt last year and possesses the sort of speed and stamina that a 37 year-old is unlikely to be able to live with. It will be his first time fighting for ONE Championship and wearing MMA gloves, but the younger man will still be a big favorite here.

The entire ONE: “Battleground” fight card will be available to view free in some territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.

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ONE: ‘Full Blast’ will be broadcast this Friday. The event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium is headlined by a bantamweight Muay Thai bout pitting Saemapetch Fairtex against Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek Uthai.

Here is my preview:

Anthony Do vs. Liang Hui (Catchweight)

Anthony Do (7-4) earned a ONE Championship contract after stopping Ryo Hatta and Fritz Biagtan, two big names in Asia. He faced Lito Adiwang at ONE Warrior Series 7 and was constantly trying and largely failing to get the fight to the ground, that will surely be his strategy here.

Liang Hui (5-6-1) is in a career nosedive after losing his last four fights. He is primarily a wrestler and his striking looks limited.

catchweight contest added to the card pits Anthony Do (7-4) against Liang Hui (5-6-1).

Ahmed Faress vs Edward Kelly (Featherweight)

Ahmed Faress (16-3) will also be making his promotional debut after beating experienced British bantamweight Alan Philpott at OWS 10 last year. He comes from a karate background but has 13 submission wins on his record.

Edward Kelly (12-8) comes from a wushu background and has a solid right kick. He doesn’t have quite as many submission wins on his record as his brother Eric but is a veteran of 15 ONE Championship fights.

Kickboxing: Santino Verbeek vs. Miles Simson (Welterweight)

Santino Verbeek has spent virtually his entire career competing in Europe and has never been in with any big names. He trains under Ernesto Hoost in his native Holland and has a hard overhand right and likes to set up low kicks using body shots.

Miles Simson has a background in Muay Thai but is better known for his time in Glory where he won one fight out of three. The Dutchman is dangerous with his knees.

Kantharaj Agasa vs. Wei Xie (Flyweight)

Kantharaj Agasa (11-2) has a background in wrestling and judo and holds two wins over ONE Championship flyweight Roshan Mainam. He won’t waste any time before trying to get this fight to the ground.

Wei Xie (6-3) is very flat footed which could make him vulnerable to takedowns. But he can switch stance and throw solid punches and kicks.

Muay Thai: Saemapetch Fairtex vs. Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek U-thai (Bantamweight)

There is no question that Kulabdam Sor Jor Piek U-thai comes into this contest with the more impressive Muay Thai credentials. He is one of the best in the business, a southpaw with a devastating straight left.

Saemapetch Fairtex is coming off two impressive wins at the Channel Stadium. He is a fast, elusive southpaw with a solid left kick.

The entire ONE: “Full Blast” fight card will be available to view free in some territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.

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ONE: ‘Dangal’ will be broadcast on May 15th and the card has an Indian theme. There are six fights on the card at the Singapore Indoor Stadium with Brandon Vera defending his heavyweight title against Arjan Bhullar in the main event.

There are second generation Indians like Gary Mangat and Bhullar on the card as well as born and bred Indians like Roshan Mainam and Ritu Phogat. Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym should have too much for Sean Clancy but the MMA bouts looke extremely well matched.

Here’s my preview:

Gary Mangat vs. Roshan Mainam (Flyweight)

Gary Mangat (15-3) is a southpaw who is very light on his feet which allows the Canadian the throw kicks from unorthodox angle, but he loses a little in terms of power. He will want to keep this one standing and should have a clear advantage over Mainam in striking terms.

Roshan Mainam (6-2) is a wrestler who has been working on his all round game since relocating to Evolve MMA. But takedowns remain his bread and butter and the Indian won’t be slow to try and get this fight to the ground.

Ritu Phogat vs. Bi Nguyen (Atomweight)

Ritu Phogat (4-0) is also a wrestler who has been working on her all round game since relocating to Evolve MMA. Like Mainam she has won all her ONE Championship fights to date with takedowns consistently being the key to these victories.

Bi Nguyen (5-6) has some kickboxing and Muay Thai experience but almost alwasy goes the distance and has lost her last three fights.

Ayaka Miura vs. Rayane Bastos (Catchweight)

Ayaka Miura (10-3) is known for her scarf hold armlocks but the Japanese fighter’s striking is very limited. If she can’t find a way to win with her specialist submission then she tends to struggle.

We haven’t seen much of Rayane Bastos (4-0-1) but the Brazilian appears to have a very strong submission game. Stylistically that could make this a good matchup for the undefeated 22 year old.

Muay Thai: Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym vs. Sean Clancy (Bantamweight)

Tawanchai PKSaenchaigym was the 2018 Lumpinee fighter of the year, SAT fighter of the year and Siam Sports fighter of the year which is quite the trilogy. He is a tricky, technical southpaw who is very good with teeps and knees, interchanging the two to devastating effect.

Sean Clancy lives in Thailand and has the classic Thai style with a high guard and the weight on the back foot. He is guaranteed to take the fight to Clancy but looks to be outmatched by the top tier Thai.

Brandon Vera (c) vs. Arjan Bhullar (For heavyweight title)

Brandon Vera (16-8-0-1) started out as a wrestler but is better known for his kickboxing. He is coming off a proper training camp at Sanford MMA but Bhullar represents a step up for a 43 year old who last won a fight in 2019.

Arjan Bhullar (10-1) represented Canada in the 2012 Olympics so his wrestling credentials are outstanding. He also has very good head movement and is comfortable exchanging strikes at close quarters.

The entire ONE: “Dangal” fight card will be available to view free in some territories using the newly launched app which you can download here.

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ONE on TNT IV will be broadcast live this Wednesday (US time). The event is set for the Singapore Indoor Stadium and sees Aung La Nsang take on Reinier de Ridder after a last minute reshuffle.

La Nsang was originally supposed to fight Vitaly Bigdash in a middleweight fight but the Russian has COVID-19. Instead he finds himself defending his light heavyweight strap against de Ridder who saw a welterweight title fight with Kiamrian Abbasov fall through a couple of weeks ago.

Another late alteration sees Shinya Aoki matched with Eduard Folayang in a lightweight trilogy bout. The Japanese veteran had originally been scheduled to face Sage Northcutt who is suffering from the lingering effects of COVID-19.

The card also sees Eddie Alvarez back in action for the second time this month. He faces Ok Rae Yoon in a potential lightweight title eliminator.

Here’s my preview:

Colbey Northcutt vs. Courtney Martin (Flyweight)

Colbey Northcutt (1-1) was underwhelming on her promotional debut. The karate specialist could not put away a far smaller opponent, even if she did win the decision by a comfortable margin.

Debutant Courtney Martin won the GAMMA World Championships as a bantamweight and holds an 8-1 amateur record. The Australian will be making her pro debut but looks set to be a real test for Sage Northcutt’s older sister.

Muay Thai: Jackie Buntan vs. Ekaterina Vandaryeva (Strawwweight)

Jackie Buntan looked outstanding against Wondergirl Fairtex last time out. Her boxing was on point and her friend and team mate Jackie Todd has already beaten this opponent in an atomweight fight.

Ekaterina Vandaryeva’s main claim to fame is a win over Joanna J?drzejczyk during her kickboxing career. She has not fought since 2019 and has moved up in weight after giving birth last year.

Shinya Aoki vs. Eduard Folayang (Lightweight)

Shinya Aoki (46-9-0-1) is a southpaw with a solid left kick. But he is one of the greatest submission fighters in MMA history and is only ever one takedown away from victory, as Folayang found out to his cost in the rematch.

Eduard Folayang (22-10) needs to fight the perfect fight. The Filipino cannot afford to get taken down unless there is very little time remaining in the round and needs to make every strike count, no-one has beaten Aoki by decision since 2010 so he probably needs a KO.

Oumar Kane vs. Kirill Grishenko (Heavyweight)

Oumar Kane (3-0) has some ferocious slams as you would expect from a fighter with a background in Senegalese wrestling. He also lit up seasoned kickboxer Patrick Schmid with punches last time out and looks a real prospect in the heavyweight division.

Kirill Grishenko (3-0) appears to come from a wrestling background. He did catch one opponent with a spinning back fist in a previous fight but is quite stiff with his striking and is clearly taking a step up here.

Eddie Alvarez v. Ok Rae Yoon (Lightweight)

Eddie Alvarez (30-8 ) was disqualified in the first round at ONE on TNT. That fight with Iuri Lapicus finished very fast and he has been handed a quick turnaround. The American will bring his trademark aggression, expect him to push the pace with punches and takedowns right from the bell.

Ok Rae Yoon (14-3) uses his height and reach to attack with low kicks and straight punches but lacks any sort of killer instinct. It’s difficult to see him finding a way to finish Alvarez so he probably needs to try and keep the former UFC and Bellator champion at bay with his jab while circling away and avoiding the right hand.

Aung La Nsang (c) vs. Reinier de Ridder (For light heavyweight title)

Aung La Nsang (26-11-0-1) has a crisp Muay Thai style and likes to stay behind a high guard and attack with punches and low kicks. He will want to keep this one standing having already been submitted by de Ridder once.

Reinier de Ridder (13-0) is a BJJ black belt and the 6”4 Dutchman uses his long limbs to very good effect. Striking isn’t his specialty but one takedown is all it takes, as La Nsang found out to his cost in the first fight.

The entire ONE on TNT IV fight card will be available to view live and free in some territories using the newly launched app which you can download here. In the U.S. it will be live on TNT.

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