MMA can be a brutal sport, but sometimes a fighter is his own worst enemy.
Former K-1 kickboxer Melvin Manhoef hoped to break a three-fight losing streak against DEEP champion Yoshiyuki Nakanishi at the latest ONE FC 3 in Singapore, but one leg kick left him and his opponent with two large gashes that ended the bout in the very first round.
The fight, which was fought at a catchweight of 195 pounds and resulted in a no contest, started off quickly and was going well for the Dutch-Surinamese kickboxer, until Manhoef’s shin connected with Nakanishi’s knee, leaving both fighters bloodied with two very big cuts.
The doctors first checked Nakanishi’s cut before stopping the bout when they realized Manhoef had also been cut. Both were bad, but it’s safe to say Manhoef’s was worse.
Manhoef entered the fight with consecutive losses against Tim Kennedy, Tatsuya Mizuno and Robbie Lawler. His 24-9-1 record includes 23 knockout wins, most of which have come in the first round. He also holds a 37-10 kickboxing record with 27 knockout wins.
Some of his most notable wins have come against fighters like Kazushi Sakuraba, Mark Hunt, Kazuo Misaki, Evangelista Santos and Ian Freeman. His only MMA victory since 2009 also came against Misaki.
Nakanishi has gone 3-1 since winning the Deep light heavyweight title in 2010. All three of his wins have come by knockout.
The ONE FC card also featured Tatsuya Kawajiri, who defeated Donald Sanchez by submission in the first round, Felipe Enomoto, who lost to Zorobabel Moreira, and Fabricio Monteiro, who defeated Yuya Shirai.
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