Kongsuk Bests Yodlekpet To Kick Off Streak, Rambong Scores KO For Sixth Straight Win At ONE Friday Fights 77
ONE Friday Fights 77 showcased all the thrills and spills fight fans have come to expect from the explosive martial arts series when it took over Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium on Friday, August 30.
Twelve high-octane Muay Thai and MMA bouts went down under the bright lights, and the vast majority finished before the final bell.
In case you missed any of the action, here’s everything that happened inside the “Madison Square Garden of The East” live in Asia primetime.
Kongsuk Battles Back To Overcome Yodlekpet In Style
The evening’s main event lived up to the hype as Kongsuk Fairtex found phenomenal form to earn the win against Yodlekpet “The Destroyer” Or Atchariya and make it three in a row at ONE Friday Fights.
“The Destroyer” started strong and targeted Kongsuk’s body in the early going of their 137-pound catchweight Muay Thai tilt. He continually cut off the ring to low land low kicks while reading everything his Thai compatriot threw his way.
However, the veteran instincts of Kongsuk came to life in the second frame, as he struck with combinations and remained elusive, preventing Yodlekpet from getting close.
The two-time Lumpinee Stadium Muay Thai World Champion was in full control moving into the final round, but Yodlekpet stayed in the fight.
The four-time Muay Thai World Champion had his moments, but it wasn’t enough to sway the judges, and they handed Kongsuk the unanimous decision win in the end, moving his professional slate to 65-17.
Rambong Demolishes Longern In Round One To Extend Streak
Rambong Sor Therapat added to his impressive run of form in ONE Championship with a knockout victory over Longern Sor Sommai in their 130-pound catchweight Muay Thai clash.
The bout began with both fighters trading fast combinations as each tried to measure the distance via sharp kicks and punches.
The decisive moment came when they returned to the center of the ring. Rambong set up an attack with a short right jab and a left low kick and then unleashed a destructive left hook that sent his Thai compatriot crashing to the canvas.
Longern was unable to continue, so Rambong secured the KO win at 1:56 of the opening round, pushing his ONE Friday Fights streak to six in a row and marking his 79th career victory overall.
Face Finishes Tawanchai With Heavy Body Blitz
Face Erawan went straight to work in his 123-pound catchweight Muay Thai bout against Tawanchai VK Khaoyai.
The 27-year-old Thai tore into his countryman with powerful southpaw weapons and caused particular damage with his thudding straight left to the body.
After backing Tawanchai into the corner of the ring, Face let rip with a flurry of punches that he punctuated with a pair of hooks to the body.
The hurtful shots put the 16-year-old down and out at 1:46 of round one, pushing Face’s slate to 76-16.
Khundet Steamrolls ManU In Just 46 Seconds
Khundet PK Saenchai wasted little time in his 132-pound catchweight Muay Thai affair with ManU Sitjanim, finding the KO win in under a minute.
Khundet immediately put pressure on his Thai compatriot, and he refused to let him find any footing. After putting ManU against the ropes, the PK Saenchai Muaythaigym debutant sank him with a blistering left hook.
The 22-year-old managed to answer the referee’s count, but Khundet smelt blood, and he chased him into the corner and unleashed a plethora of punches that forced the stoppage at 0:46 of round one and secured him the 61st victory of his career.
Teeyai Debuts With First-Round Knockout Win Over YodUdon
Teeyai Wankhongohm MBK demolished YodUdon BS Muaythai in the opening round of their 116-pound catchweight Muay Thai thriller.
The debuting star started strong with multiple thudding low kicks, but it was his devastating hands that determined the outcome.
A precise right hook staggered YodUdon, but he briefly evaded the follow-up attacks. However, Teeyai quickly closed the distance again and unleashed a punishing combo of right and left hooks to seal the knockout victory over his Thai compatriot at 1:39 of the opening round.
This impressive win was Teeyai’s 31st in the striking arts.
Nehramit Battles Back For Huge KO Win Against Petmuangthai
Nehramit Annymuaythai got revenge in spectacular fashion against his old foe Petmuangthai Sor Naruemon.
Petmuangthai had the upper hand at the start of their 114-pound catchweight Muay Thai encounter, connecting with heavy blitzes of punches, and he also hurt his fellow Thai with thudding elbows in close.
But Nehramit turned the tables in the blink of an eye.
The 19-year-old Keatkhamtorn representative let rip with a right hand when Petmuangthai stepped in with a knee, and it instantly shut his lights out to secure Nehramit the debut KO win at 2:25 of the opening round and earn him his 22nd career victory overall.
Pichitchai Outstrikes Petnamkhong In Exciting Brawl
Pichitchai PK Saenchai returned to the winners’ column in Lumpinee Stadium by edging out Petnamkhong Mongkolpet in 122-pound catchweight Muay Thai.
Petnamkhong’s longer limbs allowed him to dictate the early going and land body punches and high kicks that helped him take the lead. That forced Pichitchai to go back to the drawing board to figure out a different point of entry.
The PK Saenchai Muaythaigym standout brought the fight to his opposite man in round two and stuck in the pocket to force a brawl. Petnamkhong offered sharp responses in return, and the pair went blow for blow.
Both men knew it was all to play for in the final round, and they didn’t let up. Pichitchai tagged Petnamkhong with a stunning right hand in the final minute, and that pushed him to a split-decision win when all was said and done, moving his professional slate to 114-37.
Kinteh KOs Petsaenchai With Thunderous Left In Round Three
Omar “Ochoo” Kinteh secured a spectacular knockout victory over Petsaenchai M U Den KhonmaiBaowee in his ONE Championship debut.
The Swiss/Gambian standout used his knees to dominate the clinch in the first round of their flyweight Muay Thai bout, while Petsaenchai pressured with punches throughout.
An intense second round saw back-and-forth action that was difficult to separate on the scorecards. Both men looked to land a winning blow – leading to a showstopping display of striking – but neither could find it.
In the final frame, Kinteh staggered Petsaenchai with a left hook and unleashed a thunderous left that dropped his Thai adversary to the floor.
The FA Group man got back to his feet, but the referee quickly recognized he was in no state to continue. The contest was waved off at 2:29 of the third round, and Kinteh’s record moved to 13-2 with the KO win.
Salhi Impresses With Second-Round Finish Of Sakamoto
Imad Salhi looked strong in his ONE Championship debut, as he dispatched Arashi Sakamoto in round two of their 121-pound catchweight Muay Thai battle.
The Spanish-Moroccan striker moved constantly in round one, forcing Sakamoto to try and chase him down. As he did, the Japanese fighter walked on to heavy kicks to the body and head.
Salhi continued his kick-heavy attack against his rival’s punches in the second frame and then found an opening for a crunching right hook. The 22-year-old followed it up with a left kick that crashed into Sakamoto’s guard as he crumbled to the mat.
With his foe unable to make the count, Salhi took the knockout win at 1:40 of round two to move to 14-1 in his career.
Sutin Sees Off Super Yay Chan In Frantic Three-Round Tilt
The action was nonstop when Sutin Rinnmuaythai took on Super Yay Chan in a 143-pound catchweight Muay Thai affair, and the former did just enough to earn the win.
Sutin felt the pressure early on from his Myanmar foe, but he read him well to counter with high kicks and sharp body shots. Super Yay Chan’s pressure was difficult to quash, though, and he managed to catch Sutin with a stern right hand to go ahead in the opening minutes.
The second round saw a similar pressure from “The Super One.” But Sutin refused to back down, and his body shots began to wear his opposite man down in the latter stages.
With it all to play for in the final frame, the Rinn Muaythai standout kept his foe against the ropes and tagged him with a huge straight right down the pipe. He controlled the action from there to earn the split-decision win in the end and move to 61-15 overall.
Drissi KOs Arata To Score Debut Win In ONE
Omar Drissi made a bold statement in his ONE Championship debut, securing a knockout victory over Soichiro Arata in a back-and-forth flyweight Muay Thai tilt.
The pair men gamely traded shot for shot in the early going, but Drissi struck the first significant blow when he dropped Arata with a devastating right hook in the dying seconds of the opening round.
The Japanese standout turned the tables in the second frame and scored a knockdown of his own with a punishing combination. He then did further damage when the action resumed, slicing Drissi’s forehead open with a venomous elbow.
Both strikers threw hell for leather in the final round, and the fateful blow came via a powerful straight right from Drissi midway through. Arata hit the deck and couldn’t continue, so the Italian debutant was handed the knockout win at the 2:16 mark, elevating his record to 29-12.
Galiev Debuts In Style With Flying Knee Finish
Valmir Galiev got his ONE Championship tenure off to a stunning start with a KO win over Bolat Zamanbekov in their flyweight MMA clash.
The Russian showed some slick striking in the opening frame, but Zamanbekov did his best to nullify the danger with his wrestling and top control for much of the round.
However, after finishing the first five minutes on his feet, Galiev was confident going into the second stanza.
He quickly launched a flying knee that connected with Zamanbekov’s jaw and dropped him to the canvas.
A couple of follow-up shots caused the referee to intervene after just 13 seconds, and the debut victory extended Galiev’s record to 9-1.
