ONE 167‘s main event saw One
Championship featherweight muay thai champion Tawanchai
P.K. Saenchai successfully defend his belt against a tough
challenger in Nattawut
Somkhun.
Saenchai wasted no time establishing himself as a force to be
reckoned with by delivering punishing leg kicks and sharp elbows to
Somkhun. Standing his ground, the challenger would find his footing
and have success with combinations when Saenchai would lower his
output, with Somkhun taking over the third and fourth rounds.
However, the champion showed his resolve in the final three
minutes, as it was a back-and-forth battle that saw both men have
their moments.
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Breathes were held when the judges’ scorecards were read, but
ultimately, they preferred the work of the champion, who kept his
belt via majority decision.
Rodtang Dominates Puric
The catchweight co-main event saw Rodtang
Jitmuangnon outstrike Denis Puric
in a hard-hitting kickboxing match. Jitmuangnon found his mark early, his left hook repeatedly finding
the face of Puric. “The Bosnian Menace” never lost his aggression,
though, gladly firing back despite taking damage. Ultimately, the
pressure of Jitmuangnon overwhelmed Puric over three rounds, with
the fight never out of his control thanks to his varied
strikes.
After three rounds, Jitmuangnon was given the unanimous decision
victory that he earned.
Musumeci Easily Taps Sousa
The lone grappling match on the card saw Mikey
Musumeci take on Gabriel
Sousa.
Early on, Musumeci was able to get ahold of the leg of Sousa, which
led to him having to try to tough out a calf slicer. Sousa spent
over a minute in the submission until Musumeci was able to tighten
it. The pain was unbearable, and the Brazilian was forced to
submit.
The tap from Sousa officially came 3:07 into the match.
Ruotolo Submits Cooper
Decorated grappler Kade
Ruotolo made his mixed martial arts debut against Blake
Cooper.
Ruotolo immediately looked comfortable on the feet, landing nice
kicks to the body. The 21-year-old’s impressive grappling was just
as deadly, as he was able to take the back of Cooper (2-2) and
secure a face crank. The tap officially came at the 3:20 mark of
Round 1.
Ruotolo now stands 1-0 as a professional MMA fighter.
Sitsongpeenong Outstrikes Noiri
The night’s first kickboxing match saw Masaaki
Noiri debut in ONE against Sitthichai
Sitsongpeenong.
Sitsongpeenong started strong as his left hand was able to find its
mark throughout the first round and keep Noiri from finding his
rhythm. Brutal knees and kicks to the body from Sitsongpeenong were
the separating factors in the second round, which was more
competitive. Noiri was more aggressive in the final round, even
throwing back fists, but to no avail.
All three judges scored the fight in favor of Sitsongpeenon, who is
now 129-35 in kickboxing.
Zamboanga Cruises Past Grandjean
In the second atomweight MMA fight of the night, Denice
Zamboanga took on Noelle
Grandjean.
In the first round, Zamboanga (11-2) put her opponent in danger by
securing a takedown and threatening with a rear-naked choke
attempt. No matter if it was on the feet or on the ground,
Grandjean (5-3) was a step behind. After three straightforward
rounds, the judges awarded Zamboanga a clear-cut unanimous decision
win.
“The Menace” has now won three straight fights.
Early ONE 167 Results:
Welterweight prospect Adrian Lee
(1-0) impressed in his MMA debut by submitting Antonio
Mammarella (1-1) with a rear-naked choke, notching the
submission at 1:56 of Round 1; Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat took a
unanimous decision over flyweight muay thai fighter Johan
Ghazali; Victoria
Souza (8-2) submitted Itsuki
Hirata (6-4)
with a guillotine choke at 1:31 of Round 1 of their atomweight
MMA fight; and Johan
Estupinan knocked down Zafer Sayik
twice en route to a unanimous decision win in their bantamweight
muay thai fight.