Tag: ONE Championship News

Tye Ruotolo taps out Aussie standout Izaak Michell to retain his welterweight title – ONE Fight Night 21 Highlights

Tye RuotoloFive months removed from his ONE welterweight submission grappling world title-winning performance against Magomed Abdulkadirov, Tye Ruotolo returned to…

Tye Ruotolo

Five months removed from his ONE welterweight submission grappling world title-winning performance against Magomed Abdulkadirov, Tye Ruotolo returned to the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium set to defend his crown for the very first time.

Standing in his way of a sixth straight victory was Aussie newcomer and the No. 2 ranked 185-pound grappler per FloGrappling.com, Izaak Michell.

Ruotolo attempted to shoot in for a takedown right out of the gate, but Michell was able to use his strength and stuff the attempt with ease. Michell dropped down for his own takedown attempt, but Ruotolo aggressively sprawled before getting back to his feet and separating. Jockeying for position, Ruotolo exploded, forcing Michell to back up on defense, allowing the 21-year-old star to bring him down and immediately move into mount.

Attempting to defend, Michell gave up his back, allowing Ruotolo to cinch his arm under the chin and lock in a rear naked choke. Unable to break free, Michell had no choice, but to tap out seconds before the halfway point of the 10-round match.

Official Result: Tye Ruotolo def. Izaak Michell via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:43.

Tye Ruotolo

Check out highlights from Tye Ruotolo vs. Izaak Michell at oNE Fight Night 21:

Tye Ruotolo

Kade Ruotolo scores slick rear-naked choke submission over Francisco Lo – ONE Fight Night 21 Highlights

Kade RuotoloReigning ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo returned to the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok for…

Kade Ruotolo

Reigning ONE lightweight submission grappling world champion Kade Ruotolo returned to the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok for a 180-pound catchweight clash with accomplished BJJ sensation Francisco Lo.

Lo came out fairly aggressive in the opening minute and attempted to jump triangle after finding himself backed into a corner. Ruotolo wisely avoided falling into the trap, but the exchange ultimately resulted in Lo pulling guard and dragging the 21-year-old star to the mat. Lo slapped on a body triangle to keep Ruotolo from passing.

Rutolo climbed back up to his feet, prompting Lo to attempt a heel hook. Ruotolo successfully escaped and scrambled away. Lo initiated another grappling exchange, but his overzealousness allowed Ruotolo to take top control and transition to Lo’s back. With the hooks in, Ruotolo cinched in an arm-in rear-naked choke, forcing the Brazilian to tap out almost instantly.

Official Result: Kade Ruotolo def. Francisco Lo via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:48.

Kade Ruotolo

Following the victory, it was also revealed that Ruotolo will make his mixed martial arts debut at ONE 167 on June 7 in Bangkok.

Kade Ruotolo

Check out highlights from Kade Ruotolo vs. Francisco Lo at oNE Fight Night 21:

Superbon kicks his way to another ONE world title against Marat Grigorian – ONE Friday Fights 58 Highlights

Superbon kicks his way to another ONE world title against Marat Grigorian - ONE Friday Fights 58 HighlightsThai icon Superbon returned to the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok for a long-awaited rematch with Armenian powerhouse…

Superbon kicks his way to another ONE world title against Marat Grigorian - ONE Friday Fights 58 Highlights

Thai icon Superbon returned to the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok for a long-awaited rematch with Armenian powerhouse Marat Grigorian in the ONE Friday Fights 58 headliner. The winner would emerge as the new interim ONE featherweight kickboxing world champion, setting the stage for a title unification clash with undisputed king, Chingiz Allazov.

Grigorian looked to put pressure on the Thai early and landed a flurry of strikes in the latter stage of the opening round, including a couple of solid uppercuts that connected clean. Grigorian attempted to bring that same pressure in the second as Superbon offered a series of body kicks in hopes of deterring his opponent from continuing to lumber forward.

Despite absorbing some serious punishment to his midsection, Grigorian had no intention of backing down and proceeded to pick up the pace in the fourth round as Superbon started to show signs of fatigue.

With the fight potentially tied going into the fifth and final round, both fighters emptied their gas tanks, peppering one another with a variety of brutal blows before the final bell rang, bringing an end to another classic encounter between two of the pound-for-pound best kickboxers in the world.

Superbon

?Official Result: Superbon def. Marat Grigorian via unanimous decision to win the interim ONE featherweight kickboxing world championship.

Check out highlights from Superbon vs. Marat Grigorian below:

Demetrious Johnson claims UFC CEO Dana White refused to give PPV points to flyweight fighters: ‘I didn’t get any’

Demetrious Johnson claims UFC CEO Dana White refused to give PPV points to flyweight fighters: 'I didn't get any'Despite defending his UFC flyweight title an unprecedented 11 times, Demetrious Johnson never received pay-per-view bonuses or incentives for…

Demetrious Johnson claims UFC CEO Dana White refused to give PPV points to flyweight fighters: 'I didn't get any'

Despite defending his UFC flyweight title an unprecedented 11 times, Demetrious Johnson never received pay-per-view bonuses or incentives for being the most dominant champion in promotional history.

From September 2012 to August 2018 defeated some of the biggest names in flyweight history, including Ian McCall, Joseph Benavidez, John Dodson, Kyoji Horiguchi, Henry Cejudo, and Ray Borg. He is undoubtedly one of the pound-for-pound greatest of all time. Unfortunately, Dana White and the UFC largely ignored ‘Mighty Mouse’ and his entire division because they didn’t have the drawing power of the lightweight or light heavyweight fighters.

Demetrious Johnson

As a result, Johnson was never given pay-per-view points for his time as the flyweight champion, which is something that fighters across the board are typically entitled to once they rise to the top of their respective division.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Demetrious Johnson responded to an interview where the UFC claims that DJ straight-up declined to receive points in favor of a lump-sum payout.

Johnson says that’s bullsh*t.

“I fought and fought, they specifically said we don’t give PPV points to flyweight guys, but if you’re a lightweight,” Johnson said. “A welterweight, a middleweight, heavyweight — I have been told that once they become champion, they get $500,000 flat and it went straight into their contract that they got pay-per-view points every single time. For me, it was never that.

“If I would have gotten pay-per-view points for every single time I defended my belt… 11 title defenses. You put me on three Conor McGregor cards…”When Dana White says I didn’t want pay-per-view points, that’s not true. I asked for pay-per-view points.”

Demetrious Johnson reacts to CM Punk’s reported purse for his two UFC appearances

Johnson also took exception to the fact that current WWE Superstar CM Punk received a more favorable payout during his less-than-stellar appearances inside the Octagon.

Demetrious Johnson comments on CM Punk's UFC run

Per a report from Bloody Elbow (before the pillaging of the once-great site), CM Punk received a base salary of $500,000 for both of his fights, though it was noted that the Second City Saint actually walked away with more than a million dollars for the ass-kickings he took against Mickey Gall and Mike Jackson.

“This guy comes in and gets a base salary of 500 f*cking thousand dollars and potential pay-per-view bonuses and other financial incentives in his contract,” Johnson exclaimed. “I defended the f*cking belt 11 times and I didn’t get any of this.”

Demetrious Johnson’s run in the UFC came to an end in 2018 after he surrendered his flyweight title to Henry Cejudo. ‘Mighty Mouse’ was then moved to ONE Championship in a historic trade that sent Ben Askren to the UFC. Upon his arrival, Johnson rattled off three straight victories to win the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix Tournament, setting the stage for an epic trilogy with former ONE flyweight world champion Adriano Moraes.

Demetrious Johnson vs. Adriano Moraes

Johnson also competed in a first-of-its-kind special rules bout against Muay Thai icon Rodtang Jitmuangnon under the ONE banner. With alternating rounds of MMA and Muay Thai, Johnson survived the first round before submitting ‘The Iron Man’ in the second via RNC.

“It was the best decision I’ve ever made in my whole entire career,” Johnson said of his move to ONE. “If I could do it again, I would do it ten times. And here’s the thing — I have nothing against Dana White. I am a man who is happy. I’ve been successful and I believe in my skill set.”

Johnson still sits as the reigning ONE flyweight titleholder, but he has not yet decided if he will return to defend his title or retire from MMA altogether.

Demetrious Johnson

Arjan Bhullar’s embarrassing DQ loss at ONE 166 draws criticism from CEO Chatri Sityodtong: ‘This one is unacceptable’

Arjan BhullarReferee Herb Dean disqualified Arjan Bhullar in the final minute of his ONE 166 clash with Greco-Roman Wrestling champion…

Arjan Bhullar

Referee Herb Dean disqualified Arjan Bhullar in the final minute of his ONE 166 clash with Greco-Roman Wrestling champion Amir Aliakbari.

Stepping into a potential title eliminator, ‘Singh’ refused to engage for as long as the fight was allowed to continue. Bhullar, who was ONE’s heavyweight world champion just two fights ago, was content to move backward for a majority of the contest, dancing around the cage wall and offering little in the way of offense. The slow pace prompted multiple warnings from Dean that went unacknowledged.

In the second round, patience was beginning to wear thin with Dean issuing not one, but two yellow cards.

For those unfamiliar, ONE Championship uses a yellow card system to penalize fighters for a number of infractions, including fouls — i.e. low blows, eye pokes — and for stalling, as was the case with Bhullar. Each yellow card serves as a warning, but it also deducts a percentage of the fighter’s total purse. After two yellow cards, the next one issued is a red card which results in a disqualification.

Bhullar was given two yellow cards in the second round, but after continuously failing to engage, Dean broke out the red card with just 45 seconds left in the third and final round, ensuring Arjan Bhullar would lose the contest.

Following the lackluster showing, ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong held absolutely nothing back, calling Bhullar an “embarrassment” to his home country of India.

“In thousands of fights, I have never been embarrassed,” Sityodtong said in a post-fight press conference. “We’ve had one red card in history. I never speak ill of fighters. I never speak ill of our fighters, ever. Rarely, but this one is unacceptable. I think maybe in the first round he threw one punch. Second round he threw two punches. He ran the whole time and it was very clear he was scared.

“If you want to be a professional fighter, fighting the best in the world at the highest levels… We were live broadcast in India with 1.3 billion people and it’s an embarrassment.”

Arjan Bhullar’s ONE Championship run has been frustrating, to say the least. After KO’ing Brandon Vera to win the ONE heavyweight title in May 2021, ‘Singh’ went more than two years without defending his gold as he sought to secure a more favorable contract. In June, he finally returned for a unification clash with interim titleholder Anatoly Malykhin, who dismantled him with ease.

Later on in the evening, Malykhin defeated Reinier de Ridder for the ONE middleweight title, making him the first-ever simultaneous three-division champion in MMA history.

Anatoly Malykhin becomes three-division world champion with TKO finish of Reinier de Ridder – ONE 166 Highlights

Anatoly MalykhinRussian juggernaut Anatoly Malykhin made MMA history, becoming the first fighter to hold world championships in three different divisions…

Anatoly Malykhin

Russian juggernaut Anatoly Malykhin made MMA history, becoming the first fighter to hold world championships in three different divisions simultaneously.

Already holding both the ONE light heavyweight and heavyweight titles, ‘Sladkiy’ returned to the Circle at ONE 166 in Qatar for a main event showdown with middleweight MMA champion Reinier de Ridder. After succumbing to a first-round KO in their first meeting in December 2022, ‘The Dutch Knight’ fared much better in the early going, using his clinch work to stop Malykhin’s frequent onslaughts.

However, de Ridder’s defense-heavy style couldn’t hold up to the continued attacks, particularly as Anatoly Malykhin began to viciously attack his opponent’s body in the second round.

Coming out for round three, Reinier de Ridder quickly shot in for a desperation takedown attempt which Malykhin easily defended. Ending up on top, ‘Sladkiy’ landed some ground-and-pound strikes, including a couple of well-placed knees before RDR could muster the energy to roll through to his back. Recognizing the impeccable ground game of the Dutchman, Malykin quickly disengaged and got back to his feet.

De Ridder, on the other hand, was exhausted. So much so that he couldn’t muster the energy necessary to stand up and continue, forcing referee Herb Dean to call for the stoppage.

Official Result: Anatoly Malykhin def. Reinier de Ridder via TKO (ground and pound) at 1:16 of Round 3 to win the ONE middleweight MMA world championship

With the victory, Anatoly Malykhin maintained his undefeated record, moving to 14-0. He also kept his 100% finish rate intact and became MMA’s first-ever three-sport world champion.

Check Out Highlights From Anatoly Malykhin vs. Reinier de Ridder at ONE 166: