Every aspect of the art of combat sports can be exciting, but knockouts are like home runs in baseball and slam dunks in basketball because they resonate with every fan.
ONE Championship has had its share of knockout artists across almost every division under the promotion’s umbrella.
In no particular order, here are 10 of the most-dangerous knockout artists in ONE Championship.
Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev (8-1, 6 KO)
He’s just 8-1 with 6 KOs, but 24-year-old Dagestani lightweight Saygid “Dagi” Guseyn Arslanaliev has already shown off his massive power. For the second time in his professional career, Arslanaliev is in the midst of a three-match streak where he has finished each contest with a TKO/KO. It’s a little challenging to pick which one of Arslanaliev’s knockouts was the most impressive, but his victory over Malaysia’s Ev Ting is extraordinary.
It took just 25 seconds for Arslanaliev to finish Ting. Only three months later, Arslanaliev followed up that win with another first-round KO victory. This time he decimated Amir Khan. The victories advanced Arslanaliev into the finals of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix. Arslanaliev will face the winner of the Timofey Nastyuhkin vs. Honorio Banario in the final.
Timofey Nastyuhkin (13-4, 7 KO)
With a KO percentage of just over 50 percent, you might think Nastyuhkin shouldn’t be on this list. However, opponents who have faced Nastyuhkin would likely disagree with you. Through 2014 and part of 2015, Nastyuhkin was laying waste to opponents. He strung together four consecutive KO wins, with one coming over future ONE Lightweight World Champion Eduard Folayang.
While that win was spectacular, Nastyuhkin’s best KO had to be his most recent. He faced the much-hyped Eddie Alvarez in March and pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the year with a first-round stoppage win. That’s how he made it to the Grand Prix semifinals.
Yodsanklai IWE Fairtex (201-72, 78 KO)
The KO artists with ONE are present in multiple sports. One of kickboxing’s top finishers is Yodsanklai IWE Fairtex, and he fits the mold. In his career, he has had more than 270 pro bouts with 76 KO finishes. His best streak began in 2007 and ended in 2008. He had five consecutive KO finishes. While Yodsanklai might be a little past his prime, his best KO probably came in 2018 when he blasted Luis Regis with double uppercuts at ONE: DESTINY OF CHAMPIONS.
Unfortunately for Yodsanklai, he lost his last bout via decision to Samy Sana.
Luis Santos (65-12-1-1, 38 KO)
When it comes to mixed martial arts, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone with more experience than Santos. It’s likely equally as challenging to locate an athlete in the sport with more knockouts. Santos’ pro career dates back to 2000. In 2004, he scored five straight wins by KO/TKO. However, the best KO of his career might have just taken place in 2018.
Santos finished Daichi Abe with a body kick to get the win. When you consider Santos was 39 years old at the time, the victory served as a point of validation. It proved he can still compete at a high level. Unfortunately, Santos came up short in his most recent match. He had to bow out of his bout with James Nakashima in April because of an injury. When he’s healthy, he may be interested in a rematch with Nakashima.
Petchdam Petchyindee Academy (16-9-1, 6 KO)
Petchdam‘s record may not blow you away, but the ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion has already proven himself to be a formidable striker. Leading up to his title-winning victory over Elias Mahmoudi, Petchdam scored three consecutive highlight-reel finishes. The most memorable one came in October 2018 when he devastated Kenny Tse in the first round.
Petchdam’s first title defense isn’t scheduled, but all eyes will be on the dynamic Thai star when he returns.
Aung La N Sang (25-10-1, 11 KO)
At one point, Aung La wasn’t exactly a KO artist. After all, he has 14 wins on his record that did not come by KO. However, lately, he has become one of the most dangerous strikers on the ONE roster. The reigning ONE Middleweight and Light Heavyweight World Champion have four straight wins by KO.
Easily, the best one came in 2018 when he smashed Ken Hasegawa. The scrap was called the Fight of the Year by several publications, and it set up a rematch in which Aung La also won by KO. The rematch took place in March, and it was the last time we’ve seen him in the ONE circle. His next bout will take place in October, and he’ll likely be defending his light heavyweight title against ONE Heavyweight World Champion Brandon Vera, but the bout has yet to be made official.
Brandon Vera (16-7-1, 11 KO)
He hasn’t competed regularly over the past few years, but anyone familiar with his career and what he’s done with ONE Championship knows Vera is a powerful striker. He’s had four bouts with ONE Championship, and he’s won all of them by KO or TKO. He’ll likely face Aung La next with a chance to become a two-division world champion.
Vera’s best KO came 13 years ago when he stopped the legendary Frank Mir.
Zebaztian Kadestam (12-4, 10 KO)
Kadestam’s nickname is The Bandit. Perhaps that’s appropriate because he has been known to steal his opponent’s consciousness. Kadestam’s last six wins have come by KO or TKO, and that includes his ONE Welterweight World Title-winning performance over Tyler McGuire in November 2018.
It was a fifth-round finish culminated by a devastating knee on the ground. Kadestam would follow that win up with a successful title defense against Georgiy Kichigin in March. He will be a tough champion to dethrone.
Xiong Jing Nan (14-1, 10 KO)
Rarely do you see a female martial artist with a finish rate like Xiong. She has destroyed almost every opponent she’s faced, and that includes ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion Angela Lee. After being outfought through four rounds and nearly succumbing to a triangle armbar in the fourth, Xiong showed her resilience and extraordinary power in the fifth. She smashed through the depleted Lee to get the come-from-behind TKO win.
Xiong is a pound-for-pound contender and one of the promotion’s fiercest strikers.
Cosmo Alexandre (8-1, 6 KO)
As a mixed martial artist, Brazil’s Cosmo Alexandre is about as dangerous as they come during stand-up exchanges. Sage Northcutt found that out the hard way at ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON. It took Alexandre just 29 seconds to destroy Northcutt with a right hand that sent the latter face-planting on the canvas.
Alexandre would like to face Vitor Belfort in his next bout, which would be a battle between explosive Brazilian strikers. If that one takes place, don’t blink.
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