Jaosuayai Scores KO To End Puengluang’s Streak, Bumina-ang Earns US$100,000 Contract At ONE Friday Fights 65
ONE Friday Fights 65 lit up Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Boxing Stadium with another festival of fisticuffs on Friday, May 31.
The 12-bout Muay Thai and MMA showcase brought new stars and known commodities to the forefront, and each competitor threw down in a fiery fashion that is expected in the world’s largest martial arts organization.
In case you missed any of the thrilling knockouts or razor-close battles, here’s what went down live in Asia primetime.
Jaosuayai Overcomes Odds To Sleep Puengluang With Left Hook
Jaosuayai Mor Krungthepthonburi produced the biggest upset of the night as he returned to winning ways and brought an end to Puengluang Baanramba’s perfect 6-0 slate in ONE Championship with a devastating first-round KO.
However, before the highlight-reel moment came, Jaosuayai was forced to absorb one attack after another from his fellow Thai, who stepped forward with rounds of one-twos, elbows, and feint kicks.
Puengluang confidently backed the 22-year-old against the rope, but Jaosuayai shot back from there and floored him with a counter-left hook.
However, the Baanramba man wasn’t out the fight, and he took control after answering the eight count.
But Jaosuayai knew what he was there to do, and he bet Puengluang to the punch with an inch-perfect left hook to drop him for good, take the win, and up his record to 56-22-2 at the 2:11 mark of the second round.
Petphupa Edges Out Longern In Three-Round Thriller
Petphupa Aekpujean scored the 61st win of his career against Longern Sor Sommai in 130-pound catchweight Muay Thai action, but he had to go through hell and back to get it.
The Superbon Training Camp met his Thai compatriot in the center of the fabled ring after the opening bell, and neither man took a backward step for nine exhausting minutes.
When one delivered, the other countered, and vice versa – punch-for-punch, elbow-for-elbow, kick-for-kick – making it a scintillating battle for the crowd in attendance and those watching around the world to witness.
Without a finish, the call on who the winner was came down to the judges. Their eagle eyes deemed Petphupa’s output more significant, and the 18-year-old was handed the unanimous decision victory to push his slate to 61-16-5 overall.
Watcharaphon Makes Light Work Of Petnumkhum
Watcharaphon PK Saenchai had a point to prove in his ONE Championship debut against Petnumkhum Phundakratanaburi, and he made it inside one round of their 119-pound catchweight Muay Thai tilt.
The 31-year-old went full steam ahead from the opening bell, swinging huge right hooks and landing long shots to down his man early on. He kept the pressure going after the restart and quickly dropped Petnumkhum again with another barrage.
With his confidence oozing, Watcharaphon pushed his Thai compatriot into the corner of the Lumpinee ring and floored him for the third and final time to walk away with the TKO win at 2:04 of round one.
The PK Saenchai Muaythaigym man improved his slate to 168-40-3 with the debut victory and announced himself on the ONE stage in style.
Tahaneak Stops Petnongnoey In Thrilling Comeback Win
Tahaneak Nayokatasala moved to 2-0 in ONE Friday Fights ONE Championship with a first-round blitzing of Petnongnoey Nokkhao KorMor11 in 119-pound catchweight Muay Thai action.
Tahaneak was shocked when he found himself on the mat form a short elbow just 30 seconds into the bout. But that seemingly woke him up, as he pressed Petnongnoey from there and dropped him with a sneaky straight left a minute later.
Sensing a finish, the 22-year-old powerhouse pushed his opposite man against the ropes and connected with another left he disguised behind a head kick.
The blow turned Petnongnoey’s lights out at 2:17 of round one, and Tahaneak moved to 42-12 overall with the win.
ManU Off To A Dream Start In ONE With Win Over Jongangsuk
ManU Sitjanim shook off a late onslaught from Jongangsuk Sor Theppitak in their 132-pound catchweight Muay Thai duel to start his ONE Championship campaign in winning ways.
Both athletes took precautionary measures in the opening three minutes before settling into a rhythm. But from then on, it was all-out action.
ManU went forward with heavy leather, clipping Jongangsuk with straights, hooks, and elbows. Then, in the dying seconds of the second frame, he caught his foe slacking and slid in a right elbow to earn an eight-count.
However, Jongangsuk had no quit in him, and he tried everything to turn the tide in round three.
Unfortunately, he had left it a little too late, and all three judges handed ManU the win after nine minutes of action to bump his slate to 81-20.
Samransing Ends Jingreedtong With Blistering Second-Round KO
Samransing Sitchalongsak and Jingreedtong Kelasport walked into Lumpinee looking to impress the ONE Championship brass in their respective debuts, and it was the former that got the job done.
Samransing used his punches and low kicks to get a read on his Thai compatriot in round one of the 128-pound catchweight Muay Thai tie. With that information in hand, he came out for the next three minutes as a man possessed.
The 20-year-old representing the Sak Buriram camp shuffled this way and that, looking for an opening. Once he found it, he teleported Jingreedtong to a fourth dimension with a devastating jab, straight-right combination.
The referee gave Jingreedtong the chance to answer the count, but he didn’t budge, so the fight was waved off after just 28 seconds in round two.
With the debut victory, Samransing nudged his record to 26-8-1.
Dayakaev Dismisses Avatar For Third Straight Victory
Abdulla Dayakaev picked up his third straight win in ONE Championship by overcoming grizzled veteran Avatar PK Saenchai in 147-pound catchweight Muay Thai action.
The Russian striker came in confident, which showed as he stalked his man in the early going and landed multiple combinations. But Avatar was quick to let him know it wouldn’t be so straightforward as he launched back with heavy kicks.
Dayakaev was strong with the combinations again in the second frame, and he put heavy pressure on the PK Saenchai star against the ropes to open up opportunities for lethal elbows.
Round three saw a much closer contest, as Avatar fought hard in the clinch and landed significant body strikes.
Ultimately, though, Dayakaev’s output proved more significant in the judges’ eyes, and he was handed the majority decision win to move to 10-1 overall and 3-0 in ONE.
Kireev Cruises Past Tun Min Aung To Keep Winning Streak Alive
Dominant is the word that perfectly describes Dmitriy Kireev’s emphatic display as he cruised to victory over Tun Min Aung.
Barely 10 seconds into their featherweight Muay Thai clash, the unbeaten Russian sat down his 17-year-old foe with a right jab. From there, he continued to fire on all cylinders with little retaliation.
The Archangel Michael upstart blitzed in with jabs, kicks, and hooks that came with power and pace and even when his Burmese foe attempted to advance behind combinations, he hopped around unbothered before continuing his onslaught.
At the final bell, all three judges handed Kireev the unanimous decision win, and he extended his perfect slate to 5-0 on debut in ONE Championship.
Zhang Scores Classic Come-From-Behind Win Over Arata
Zhang “Chinese Tiger” Jinhu slid back into the win column in his scrappy affair with a game Soichiro Arata.
After finding himself on the receiving end of an eight count just 15 seconds into the flyweight Muay Thai clash, Zhang dusted himself off, went on the attack, and dropped Arata twice to edge out his Japanese opponent over three rounds.
The Chinese star scored his first knockdown in round one with a two-piece punch combination from the left side, and the second came in the following frame when a jutting left elbow hit Arata’s forehead like a sideways anvil.
With two knockdowns in the bag and some terrifyingly beautiful bodywork, Zhang earned the unanimous decision from the judges at the end, which stood as his 38th career win.
Bumina-ang Chokes Out Oorzhak To Earn Main Roster Contract
Carlo Bumina-ang was pushed to the limit in his bantamweight MMA clash with Chayan Oorzhak, but the Filipino monster hung on to keep his dominant streak in ONE Friday Fights alive.
The Team Lakay star brought his signature style into the fold, charging Oorzhak and dropping him inside the first minute. He then hunted for the rear-naked choke, but his Mongolian-Russian opponent’s senses allowed him to fend off the attempts.
Bumina-ang brought the same approach to the second frame and swarmed Oorzhak again. This time, though, he stunned his adversary with a right hand, allowing him to sink in a ninja choke and secure the submission win at 2:39 of round two.
With the win, Bumina-ang moved to 5-0 in ONE Championship and earned a lucrative US$100,000 contract with ONE Championship.
Honda Impresses In Three-Round Showing Against Noda
In strawweight MMA action, Ryosuke Honda gained a well-deserved unanimous decision victory over promotional newcomer Ryosuke Noda.
The Tiger Muay Thai athlete relied on his stand-up skill to rack up damage, and he constantly tagged Noda with jabs and follow-up lefts to ease himself into the lead.
Though his foe threatened with triangle chokes and armbars from guard in the second canto, Honda defended well and responded with heavy artillery from the top to see off the frame.
The Japanese star continued to work in the striking department in the third round. He dictated every exchange with his fists, and that helped to earn him the unanimous decision win at the end.
The 33-year-old picked up his second victory at ONE Friday Fights and improved his overall resume to 13-4.
Hao Nails Debut Win Over Masahiro
Fans at Lumpinee couldn’t have asked for a better way to kick off Friday’s spectacle than with the intense 118-pound catchweight Muay Thai battle between Hao Shuai and Shiga Masahiro.
The 17-year-old Hao kept the pressure on his older foe across three rounds, battering Masahiro with both conventional and freakish attacks.
Hao’s punches set up spinning back kicks, which made way for jumping knees that ricocheted off his foe’s rib cage before he brought in thunderous punches.
As the Sathian Muay Thai Gym standout’s attacks came full circle, he left no doubt in the judges’ minds as to who should walk away with the unanimous decision.
Hao’s debut victory in ONE improved his all-striking record to 59-3.
