Tag: ONE Championship News

Rodtang scores unanimous decision victory in three-round war with Denis Puric – ONE 167 Highlights

Rodtang scores unanimous decision victory in Three-Round war with Denis Puric - ONE 167 HighlightsAfter delivering one of the greatest Muay Thai fights of all time in September, Rodtang Jitmuangnon made his long-awaited…

Rodtang scores unanimous decision victory in Three-Round war with Denis Puric - ONE 167 Highlights

After delivering one of the greatest Muay Thai fights of all time in September, Rodtang Jitmuangnon made his long-awaited return to the Circle at ONE 167 for a high-stakes kickboxing clash with ‘The Bosnian Menace’ Denis Puric.

Both fighters came out throwing heavy leather from the get-go. ‘The Iron Man’ was very elusive, a change of pace for the Thai superstar who typically loves to march forward and throw caution to the wind. Mixing up his strikes beautifully, Rodtang punished Puric up top, blasting him with combination after combination before brilliantly ripping to the body of his opponent.

In round two, Rodtang abandoned the elusiveness, opting to push forward with his iron-like chin up in the air. That gave Puric a greater opportunity to land throughout the round, but it was ‘The Iron Man’ who had the advantage in both speed and volume.

Puric undoubtedly had his best round in the third, but in the end, it wasn’t enough to undo the damage he had taken in the first two rounds.

Official Result: Rodtang def. Denis Puric via unanimous decision.

With the victory, ‘The Iron Man’ takes home his 272nd career win and his 15th under the ONE Championship banner. He is now 12-1 in Muay Thai action and 3-0 in kickboxing.

Rodtang

check out Highlights From Rodtang vs. Denis Puric at ONE 167:

Stamp Fairtex out of June fight return with ONE Championship due to knee injury: ‘80% of her meniscus was torn off’

Stamp Fairtex out of ONE Championship fight in June after knee injury 80% of her meniscus is torn offONE Championship atomweight champion Stamp Fairtex has been forced out of her upcoming fight in June due to a…

Stamp Fairtex out of ONE Championship fight in June after knee injury 80% of her meniscus is torn off

ONE Championship atomweight champion Stamp Fairtex has been forced out of her upcoming fight in June due to a knee injury.

Stamp Fairtex was set to face Denice Zamboanga on June 7, and she was also scheduled to fight strawweight champion Xiong Jingnan on Sept. 6 in Denver, Colorado in a potential champ vs. champ fight. But, due to the injury, those fights are now off which is disappointing news for Chatri Sityodtong.

Stamp Fairtex

“It’s a sad thing. One of her final sparring sessions prepping for the big event in a couple of weeks, she blew out her knee. 80 percent of her meniscus was torn off her knee, and it was on a nasty takedown where her leg got caught. Her knee buckled. She just went for surgery, very successful surgery [on Sunday].”

Sityodtong said to MMAFighting

Stamp Fairtex Recovery Hopes

Sityodtong says there is no timeframe for Stamp Fairtex to return, but the hope is to return in six months, but ONE’s CEO isn’t going to rush Stamp.

“I’ve talked to the Fairtex team, looks like it’s going to be six months but I really don’t know,” Sityodtong said. “I haven’t talked to the doctor. Let’s see what happens. It’s kind of sad but at the same time Atlanta is six months away so who knows. Stamp is a super athlete. You never know.”

Chatri

Stamp Fairtex was coming off a TKO win over Ham Seo-hee in September to win the vacant atomweight champion. Fairtex is 11-2 in MMA and holds notable wins over Alyona Rassohyna, Ritu Phogat, and Alsye Anderson among others.

Stamp Fairtex

Chatri Sityodtong says Denver card will be ‘stacked’

ONE Championship will be returning to the United States in Denver, Colorado on September 6 and Atlanta, Georgia on November 8.

Despite losing Stamp Fairtex, Sityodtong says the Denver card will still be stacked as he’s confident it will be a stellar card for MMA fans, that will be a sellout.

“These things happen,” Sityodtong said. “The most important thing right now is for Stamp to rest and recover and rehab her knee so she’s back and hopefully she’s back in several months even potentially for our Atlanta show and there’s more shows in the states for next year. So I’m pretty relaxed about that from a timing perspective and plus we have such a stacked card.

Stamp Fairtex

“We haven’t even announced our card, but we have such a stacked card for Denver, 100 percent the event is going to sell out. With zero marketing, we’re more than half sold out, which is mind bogging to me. It’s a 20,000-seat arena where the world champion Denver Nuggets play. It’s a full blown NBA stadium. We’ve done zero marketing, All we’ve done is announce that we’re coming and put a ticket link up and a couple of fights and it’s more than half sold out already. So I think four months to go, we’ll probably sell out with several weeks to go just like we did for our last Denver event. We’re very excited.”

ONE Championship made its US debut last year.

RIZIN president slams ONE Championship’s ‘fund-based’ survival scheme: ‘It’s like being on life support’

RIZIN president slams ONE Championship's 'fund-based' survival scheme: 'It's like being on life support'It’s safe to say that there is no love lost between RIZIN President Nobuyuki Sakakibara and ONE Championship CEO…

RIZIN president slams ONE Championship's 'fund-based' survival scheme: 'It's like being on life support'

It’s safe to say that there is no love lost between RIZIN President Nobuyuki Sakakibara and ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong.

During a recent episode of RIZIN CONFESSIONS on YouTube, Sakakibara, who has ties to both PRIDE FC and K-1, recently spoke about the promotion’s move into South Korea. During his comments, Sakakibara insisted that Asian-based combat sports organizations should “bring the heat to Asia” before attempting to branch out into other markets.

It was a clear dig at one of RIZIN’s biggest rivals in Asia, ONE Championship, but Sakakibara didn’t stop there. He went for the jugular, calling out ONE’s sketchy “fund-based scheme” for survival, likening it to being on life support.

“There are many casinos getting built in Incheon and they just finished building an arena that holds 15,000,” Sakakibara said. “Bring the heat to Asia first. ONE struggled in Qatar. As far as we know, they’ve been burning a lot of cash and have running for the past 10 years. They’ve burnt hundreds of millions of dollars. We have a different approach. We’re not operating off a fund-based scheme. It’s like being on life support and once the pipe is detached, you can’t live on your own.

“From this point on, RIZIN will continue to promote events that will provide the emotional rollercoasters. Delivering events like that will eventually result in a sustainable business.”

RIZIN

At one point during the conversation, the interviewer asks Sakakibara about ONE Championship’s mission statement to promote the “values of integrity, humility, honor, respect, courage, discipline, and compassion,” suggesting that it sounds like something out of a “kid’s comic book.”

Sakakibara chuckles before saying: “Nobody got the message they wanted to say.”

Jump to the 13-minute mark of the below embed to see Sakakibara’s comments about ONE Championship.

RIZIN president President Nobuyuki and ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong have a long history of trading verbal jabs

It’s certainly not the first time that Sakakibara and Sityodtong have taken digs at one another in the media. During a press event last year, Sityodtong made his feelings on K-1 very clear.

“Honestly like… It’s a tiny organization, and the level is very low. I mean, the level of striking is very low.” Sityodtong said. “That’s all I’m going to say. That’s why Takeru [Segawa], the best striker in K-1 wants to leave and come to here. If you’re an expert striker, you understand what I’m talking about. The level is very low.”

Sityodtong’s comments about K-1 and kickboxing in general drew a response from Sakakibara during an interview with MMA Mania’s Drake Riggs.

“I honestly think them as promoters talking about a sport like that,” Sakakibara I don’t appreciate them talking like that. I think that’s an issue on their personal level because kickboxing is an amazing sport. It’s a fun sport. And, as a promoter, if you cannot promote that sport, you shouldn’t be doing it. I think there are a lot of great ways to promote a kickboxing fight. Kickboxing is interesting, it’s an entertaining sport.

“If you feel like it’s not happening, it’s a promoter’s fault that’s not doing their job. They’re not picking up the right points, they’re not promoting it right. So, I think, as a promoter, they shouldn’t be saying that to specific sports. If they’ve tried, and if they can’t do it, it’s up to them, and it’s their fault. We know how to promote interesting fights, and we make it interesting.”

ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong

ONE Championship made its promotional debut in Qatar on March 1. While the event was successful from a fan perspective, delivering some exciting action, including the crowning of MMA’s first simultaneous three-division world champion.

Anatoly Malykhin

Whether or not the event was a financial success is uncertain.

ONE is scheduled to return to the United States for a loaded lineup in The Mile High City — Denver, Colorado, on Friday, September 6. The promotion has already announced four massive matchups, including three champion vs. champion matches.

Reigning atomweight MMA queen Stamp Fairtex will challenge the defending ONE strawweight MMA world champion Xiong Jing Nan. Two-sport king Jonathan Haggerty puts his bantamweight Muay Thai title on the line against Thai superstar Superlek, and BJJ icon Mikey Musumeci moves up three weight classes to challenge Kade Ruotolo for the ONE lightweight submission grappling world championship.

British fan favorite Liam Harrison will also return to take on 201-win veteran Seksan Or Kwanmuang.

ONE 168

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: