Aung La N Sang Delivers again at ONE: Pursuit Of Greatness

On October 26, “The Burmese Python” Aung La N Sang defended his ONE Middleweight World Championship against Mohammad “O Lutador” Karaki in style.

In the main event of ONE: PURSUIT OF GREATNESS at the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar, the local hero maintained his undefeated record in his homeland with a first-round TKO.

With the crowd chanting his name, Aung La N Sang pressured his opponent with leg kicks and punches from the opening bell.

He knocked the challenger down with an uppercut, and though he survived the follow-up ground and pound, he only delayed the inevitable.

Once Karaki was back on his feet, he attempted to take the World Champion to the mat, but the “Burmese Python” kept his balance and stayed upright.

Aung La N Sang’s strikes from the clinch put “O Lutador” on the back foot before a left hook to the body took the wind out of him, and a right hook sent him back to the canvas.

Aung La N Sang followed up by raining his fists down, forcing the referee to stop the contest at the 2:21 mark of the first round.

The win raised Aung La N Sang’s record to 24-10 (1 NC), and earned him “Knockout of the Night” honors.

Despite his show-stopping display, after the match, he claimed he can still improve and deliver greater performances for his Myanmar fans.

ONE: PURSUIT OF GREATNESS was stacked with more exciting action, including these highlights.

• OTHER RESULTS

  ONE Super Series Kickboxing – Light Heavyweight


  Tarik Khbabez of Morocco TKOs Ibrahim El Bouni of Morocco (2:26 of Round Three)

  ONE Super Series Kickboxing – Bantamweight 


  Han Zi Hao of China knocks out Ryan Jakiri of the Philippines (1:39 of Round One)

  Mixed Martial Arts – Flyweight


  Ye Thway Ne of Myanmar defeats Mite Yine of Myanmar via Unanimous Decision

  Preliminary Card:

  ONE Super Series Kickboxing – Flyweight


  Josh Tonna of Australia defeats Joseph Lasiri via Unanimous Decision

  Mixed Martial Arts – Bantamweight


  Ahmad Qais Jasoor of Afghanistan knocks out Ma Xu Dong of China (2:16 of Round Two)

  Mixed Martial Arts - Flyweight


  Rudy Agustian of Indonesia submits Kaji Ebin of the Philippines via Americana (4:01 of Round One)

Rahman Falls Short Against His Idol

Earlier this week, Singapore’s Radeem Rahman was watching tips on how to execute the Imanari Roll for his upcoming jiu-jitsu tournament when he suddenly got the call to face the man who the technique is named after – Masakazu Imanari.

Despite the short notice, Rahman willingly took the bout and was determined to score an upset over his idol.

The 31-year-old Singaporean started cautiously, trying to keep the bout on their feet, but it would not take long before “Ashikan Judan” hit a takedown and started to display his legendary ground game.

Even on his back, the Japanese legend was in control of the bout, with Rahman struggling to escape his submission attempts. Just when it seemed Rahman might be able to twist his way out of an armbar, he was forced to tap, and the contest ended at the 1:23 mark of the very first round.

The win was the 26th submission of Imanari’s mixed martial arts career and snapped a three-bout skid in ONE to improve his overall professional record to 37-18-2.

Subba Stops “Bushido’s” Unbeaten Run

Malaysia’s Keanu Subba was given the tough task of visiting “Bushido” Phoe Thaw’s hometown to try and put a halt to the undefeated streak of Myanmar’s fastest rising star.

It was a battle between a submission specialist and a fearsome striker. With all but one of their combined wins ending inside the distance, the match looked destined to end before three rounds were up.

Subba was aggressive to start the contest, willing to trade strikes with the knockout artist. “Bushido” was able to catch a kick that tripped the Malaysian, but it was an opportunity that Subba needed to take the bout to the ground.

Phoe Thaw tried to neutralize his opponent’s attacks, but Subba masterfully transitioned to keep the hometown hero on his back. From side control, Subba rolled Phoe Thaw to take his neck for a guillotine, forcing him to tap out at the 2:47 mark of the opening round, causing the crowd to fall silent in disbelief.

Subba, who trains out of Bali MMA and Monarchy MMA, improved to 7-3 and maintained his 100 percent finishing rate by notching his fourth submission.  

Santos Scores With Body Blow

Luis “Sapo” Santos got back in the win column with arguably the most dominant performance of the night.

In the first main-card match-up, Santos faced Daichi Abe of Japan, who was making his ONE debut.

The Pancrase champion was looking to make a statement by taking out one of the most experienced mixed martial artists in the world, but the Brazilian welterweight’s power was too much for him.

“Sapo’s” first thunderous body kick made Abe wince, which prompted a second strike to the same area. That did not find its mark, but the third did, and made the Japanese newcomer retreat and fold to the floor, forcing the referee to call a to stop the contest after just 33 seconds.

It was Santos’ 37th knockout, and he raised his record to 65-11-1.