Tynan Crushes Didier, Ruotolo Finishes Lo With Innovative Submission, Puric Upsets Smith At ONE Fight Night 21
ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas capped off yet another unforgettable doubleheader for the world’s largest martial arts organization.
Leading up to the two World Title bouts on Friday, April 5, eight captivating matches across four different combat sports primed fans for what was to come in the co-main and main events at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
New talent emerged, rising stars continued their incredible career trajectories, and the rankings potentially shifted all live in U.S. primetime. Here’s what went down on the supporting card.
Suablack Cruises Past Kuzmin With Punishing Kicks
Suablack Tor Pran49 put on a show for his fans and students watching live in “The Mecca of Muay Thai,” as he outpointed Vladimir Kuzmin in their 146.5-pound catchweight Muay Thai tilt.
The Russian was loose to start the match. He chased after Suablack and looked to attack on the front foot. But despite Kuzmin’s aggression, it was the Thai star’s well-timed left hand near the end of the first frame that turned out to be the biggest shot of the initial three-minute period.
Suablack loaded up on his offense in the second, landing left body kicks to slow down the aggressive Russian. The Thai was just as sharp in the clinch, where he manhandled Kuzmin each time they got entangled.
But the Russian would not back down. He came out aggressively in the third stanza and even put his rival in the corner. Suablack, however, found an escape hatch. The Thai made Kuzmin chase him all around the ring while punishing him with body shots and kicks to cruise to a unanimous decision win.
The victory gave Suablack his 60th career win, improved his ONE Championship slate to a spotless 6-0, and has him knocking on the door of the bantamweight Muay Thai division’s top-five rankings.
Tynan Dominates Didier, Calls Out Malykhin
Whoever said vanilla was the least exciting flavor might not be familiar with rising heavyweight MMA star Ben Tynan.
“Vanilla Thunder” continued his path of destruction against Australia’s Duke Didier, picking up his second consecutive victory in the world’s largest martial arts organization to push his career record to a perfect 6-0.
Tynan and Didier collided in the middle of the ring before the latter pinned the Canadian to the mat. Once there, “Vanilla Thunder” tried to sink in a guillotine choke, but Didier survived.
When the two men returned to their feet, Tynan trapped the Aussie against the ropes and nearly disconnected his jaw from his skull with a right elbow. Didier instantly crumbled to the canvas, and the Canadian then jumped on Didier’s back and rained down ground-and-pound until the referee waved off the action at 2:36 of round one.
Following his victory, Tynan called out three-division MMA World Champion Anatoly Malykhin and challenged him for the heavyweight belt. Also, ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong awarded him the second US$50,000 performance bonus of the night.
Puric Outlasts Smith In Three-Round Muay Thai War
Denis “The Bosnian Menace” Puric banked on two knockdowns as he ran away with a unanimous decision victory over the #2-ranked flyweight Muay Thai contender Jacob Smith in a wild three-round showdown.
Smith played the role of the aggressor, as he took the fight to Puric from the onset. The Canadian-Bosnian striker, however, was comfortable firing off the back foot and brilliantly countered Smith when he overextended himself.
Disaster struck for the Brit late in round two. Puric would catch him with an uppercut to score the first knockdown of the contest. Soon after Smith answered the referee’s eight-count, “The Bosnian Menace” knocked him down again in the waning seconds of the frame with a sneaky straight right.
Needing something drastic to turn the tide, Smith threw everything at Puric in the final stanza. However, the 39-year-old veteran effectively moved away each time while connecting with counter shots to frustrate the aggressive Englishman even further.
In the end, Puric earned the judges’ decision and improved to 41-13. With the win, he should slide into the flyweight Muay Thai division’s top-five rankings and could possibly get his dream match with ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon.
Ruotolo Taps Lo With Innovative ‘Ruotolotine’
Reigning ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Champion Kade Ruotolo looked in top form in his 180-pound catchweight submission grappling tilt with dangerous Brazilian Francisco Lo.
The pair exchanged heavy collar ties on the feet, each coming into this contest with ruthless intentions and eager to hunt for the finish. Before long, Ruotolo achieved the top position, where he proceeded to work from inside Lo’s closed guard.
After a quick scramble back to the feet, the 21-year-old American once again found himself in top position, but this time, he was able to swarm and, in a beautiful display of skill, cleanly secured back control. Lo rolled to defend, but Ruotolo sunk in a modified arm-in choke from the back to force the tap at 4:48 of the single 10-minute round.
The victory moved Ruotolo’s record to 29-3. Following the win, the American dubbed the creative submission the “Ruotolotine.” In addition, Sityodtong awarded him a US$50,000 performance bonus for his efforts.
Dedduanglek Goes 2-0 Against Naito
Dedduanglek Tded99 denied #3-ranked flyweight kickboxing contender Taiki “Silent Sniper” Naito a chance at redemption. After defeating the Japanese striker under Muay Thai rules last July, the Thai earned a unanimous decision victory in their 136-pound catchweight kickboxing battle.
Naito got off to a quick start, as he utilized his low kicks to disrupt Dedduanglek’s point of attack. But the 21-year-old Thai found answers to the Japanese standout’s offense, especially in the second frame. With Naito focused on his legs, Dedduanglek responded in kind by slowing down his aggressive rival with body kicks.
“Silent Sniper” switched to his boxing and found success early in the third stanza. But Dedduanglek continued to find a home for his body kicks, and he remained active all the way to the final bell.
In the end, all three judges gave Dedduanglek the nod. The win improved his career record to 55-12, and he could soon find his way into the kickboxing rankings.
Tetsuka Sinks In Second-Round Submission On Da Silva
In welterweight MMA action, Hiroyuki “Japanese Beast” Tetsuka submitted Valmir “Junior” Da Silva in the second round to earn his fifth straight victory.
Da Silva tried to keep the fight standing, and in the first canto, he did well doing just that. But by round two, the action hit the canvas and “Japanese Beast” started to hunt for a submission.
He ultimately found it in the form of a north-south choke. With Da Silva struggling to escape the vice-like lock, he had no choice but to tap out. Referee Herb Dean stopped the bout at the 3:34 mark of the second frame.
The win, which is Tetsuka’s fifth consecutive highlight-reel finish, moved his record to 14-4 and could lead him to ONE Welterweight MMA World Title shot next.
Songchainoi Rips Through Silva To Claim Sixth Straight Win
Songchainoi Kiatsongrit extended his impressive run in the world’s largest martial arts organization, as he cut Nicolas Leite Silva down to size to take a unanimous decision victory in their three-round strawweight Muay Thai battle.
After peppering Silva with his kicks early, the 23-year-old Thai incorporated his boxing prowess late in the opening stanza. In particular, his right hand gave the tall and lanky Brazilian debutant some problems.
It was the same powerful right hand that sent the 19-year-old to the ground in the second frame. Songchainoi had countered an aggressive Silva with a beautiful combination that culminated with a clean right, knocking the promotional newcomer to the canvas for the first and only knockdown of the contest.
The Thai’s dominance continued in the third, and he looked more and more confident by the minute. He mixed up his offense, even throwing switch kicks late in the round to keep his rival guessing.
After three rounds of action, Songchainoi left the ring with his sixth consecutive promotional win and elevated his record to 56-18.
Pacatiw Submits Wang In A Flash
Jeremy “The Juggernaut” Pacatiw displayed his silky smooth grappling in the night’s opening bantamweight MMA clash against China’s “Little Whirlwind” Wang Shuo.
After a brief tussle on the feet, the fighters quickly found themselves wrestling for position in the clinch.
The Filipino star used a deep underhook to land a clean takedown and then moved to secure his foe’s back in the blink of an eye. Seconds later, Pacatiw sunk in a picture-perfect rear-naked choke to bring an end to the contest at the 2:07 mark of round one.
The 27-year-old bantamweight has now won two in a row by submission and improved his career record to 13-5.
