Four Russian fighters took part in the ONE 161 tournament, which took place at the Singapore Indoor Arena on September 29. Two of them will go home with a win, and two with a loss. Unfortunately, none of them received a $50,000 bonus for their brilliant performance.
Saygid Izagakhmaev defeated Zhang Lipeng (lightweight, MMA)
A fighter from Khabib Nurmageov’s team won and loudly announced himself as a promising contender for the lightweight division championship belt. UFC veteran Zhang Lipeng (33-12) couldn’t convincingly resist the wrestling skills of Izagakhmaev (21-2). The Russian looked confident on the court and controlled the opposition for most of the three-round fight. He won via unanimous decision and immediately challenged legendary grappler and ONE veteran Shinya Aoki. Izagakhmaev said he was ready to meet the Japanese in a duel under both MMA rules and submission grappling rules.
Alaverdy Ramazanov defeated Captain Petchiindi (welterweight, muay thai)
The fight between Alaverda and the captain topped the tournament preliminary card. The Russian flew to Singapore for revenge, and he got it. Ramazanov got revenge on his opponent for an unfortunate loss last year, when Petchiindi knocked out the Russian in a kickboxing bout. Then Ramazanov had to give up the world welterweight title in kickboxing. This time the former ONE champions met under the rules of Muay Thai.
The Russian, known by the fighting name Babyface Killer, won by split decision. He tirelessly pressed the opponent from the start gong. Speed, working with complex boxing combinations, powerful elbowing in the second round – Alaverdi did not let his opponent relax for a second, exhausting him physically and psychologically. On the final lap, he relentlessly chased the tired captain, continuing to shorten the distance. The big point of the fight was a powerful blow in the closing seconds of round three. The judges recognized the Russian’s victory over the Thai Muay Thai star.
Rodrigo Morello defeated Ruslan Baghdasaryan (welterweight, ambition grappling)
The 27-year-old Brazilian from Singapore Evolve MMA Hall managed to beat the Russian sambo wrestler and II European Games gold medalist in just 15 seconds. Thus, Morello achieved the fastest finish in ONE submission history. He immediately transferred Baghdasaryan to the stalls by grabbing his leg. As soon as the Russian was on his back, Morello quickly secured the lock on his ankle and forced him to surrender. The brilliant performance earned Morello a $50,000 bonus.
Batradz Gazzaev lost to Umar “Reug Reug” Kane (MMA, heavyweight)
The brilliant Russian debutant, who had high hopes in this fight, failed to outplay the physically dominant Senegalese. In the first main card bout, Umar “Reug Reug” Kane won by second-round technical knockout against Batradz Gazzaev, introducing the Russian to a previously unknown bitter taste of defeat. Prior to this fight, Vladikavkaz Alania Fighting Tea hall representative went with a clean record of 3-0.
Having great wrestling skills, Gazzaev started the fight at a fast pace, trying to overpower the Senegalese and knock him to the canvas. But the former wrestling champion of Senegal knows how to defend well even in the most difficult situations. He opposed Batraz, not allowing him to take a dominant position. In the second round, “Reug Reug” himself picked up the pace, went forward and punished the opponent for a daring takedown attempt. Finishing off Gazzaev with heavy blows, referee Herb Dean opted to stop the fight before the end of the second round. Kane won his first two fights in ONE Championship but broke down in April 2021 when Kirill Grishchenko got in his way. Kane improved his record to 4 wins with one loss.
Source : MatchTV
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