The Inner Circle 23 Main Event Result: Aliff Sleeps Sam-A, Captures ONE Interim Strawweight Muay Thai World Title
Aliff Sor Dechapan made history in the main event of The Inner Circle 23, stopping living legend Sam-A Gaiyanghadao in the fifth round to capture the ONE Interim Strawweight Muay Thai World Title inside Bangkok’s iconic Lumpinee Stadium on Friday, July 24.
The Kuala Lumpur resident lived up to his promise of knocking out the former two-sport, two-division ONE World Champion on his way to becoming the first-ever Malaysian to hoist 26 pounds of gold on the grandest stage of combat sports.
Both sides started cautiously in this subscriber-exclusive card on live.onefc.com, with the weight of the moment felt from the opening bell. Inspired by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s pre-fight backing, the Sor Dechapan fighter broke the stalemate with a kick-right hand combination followed by two sharp elbows that handed him the early advantage.
Still, Sam-A found a way past his foe’s massive reach disadvantage, tapping into his veteran experience in the second round to find a way past the 22-year-old’s guard. He slipped a high kick through Aliff’s guard and followed up with his sniper-like trademark left kicks.
Despite the momentary shift in momentum, Aliff’s mix of footwork and clean counters kept the Evolve MMA superstar from stringing his combinations together.
When the action resumed in the third canto, Sam-A used his left hand to threaten behind relentless forward pressure. Refusing to trade in close quarters, Aliff chose to stay on the outside against the 42-year-old icon, keeping himself just beyond the end of Sam-A’s jabs and kicks.
Eventually, the former ONE World Champion managed to get the young Malaysian-Thai in range. While he had success there, the young gun answered with his sharp boxing, damaging Sam-A.
Aliff entered the championship rounds looking fresh, a flying knee punctuating his growing dominance as Sam-A’s output began to visibly slow. The Sor Dechapan affiliate never let up, mixing in a spinning back kick that underlined his total control of the contest.
Sam-A summoned everything he had in the fifth, but Aliff refused to be denied and continued fighting like a warrior beyond his years.
A right cross dropped the legend, and when he beat the count, the Malaysian-Thai swarmed him with a salvo of shots. A head kick and another right hand planted the 42-year-old to the canvas for good, and the referee waved it off at the 1:09 mark of the fifth stanza via knockout, earning Aliff the ONE Interim Strawweight Muay Thai World Championship.
As a result, the 22-year-old improved his record to 63-9, pocketed a US$50,000 performance bonus, and capped the night with a face-off against divisional king Prajanchai PongSuphan PK, setting the stage for a long-awaited unification clash.
