#ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix

[news247planet]

#Championship #featherweight #Boxing ONE Championship to host Featherweight Kickboxing Grand Prix in 2024 https://news247planet.com/?p=845627

[conanaltatis]

Bangkok Boxing’s Jo Nattawut beats Sasha Moisa in ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix in Singapore Training out of Bangkok Boxing Fitness in Atlanta, Georgina, United States, “Smokin” Jo Nattawut, 29, of Nakhon Ratchasima, Isan, Thailand was one of the winners at "ONE: Enter the Dragon." It was his fourth victory in ONE Championship's striking-only league ONE Super Series.

[astro-onechampionship]

Samy Sana: Yusupov ‘Has To Fear Everything Because I’m Strong, Tall, And Powerful’

Samy “AK47” Sana will face Jamal “Kherow” Yusupov in a nail-biting ONE Super Series main event at ONE: COLLISION COURSE II, a previously recorded show that airs this Friday from the Singapore Indoor Stadium. 

It will be Sana’s first bout in ONE Championship since dropping a unanimous decision to Giorgio “The Doctor” Petrosyan in the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix Championship Final last year. 

The man from Paris knows it’s vital to beat Yusupov in their featherweight Muay Thai foray if he wants another shot at gold. 

“This is a really important bout that I’m taking extremely seriously,” Sana said. “Especially [if there is a chance to compete] for the ONE Championship belt.” 

The Frenchman is also well-aware of how much power his Dagestani opponent carries in his firsts.  

After all, Yusupov knocked out “The Boxing Computer” Yodsanklai IWE Fairtex in his debut last year. It was a finish that nobody in 10 years had been able to pull off against the Thai legend – not even Sana. 

However, “AK47” believes his own win over Yodsanklai may have helped Yusupov score the impressive finish. And this Friday, he plans to show both “Kherow” and fans around the world that he's the superior athlete.

“He beat Yodsanklai after I’d beaten him. I think Yodsanklai was still in mental shock after my bout, so it was easier for him, but I’ll show that I’m the boss,” Sana said. 

“There is not a lot of footage of him available, but I’m analyzing his Yodsanklai bout. He seems to be a good striker, but I’m also really powerful. He has a good boxing technique, and he comes from K-1, so I’ll only have to care about his fists.” 

As for what Yusupov should be on the lookout for, Sana narrowed it down to three factors. 

“He has to fear everything because I’m strong, tall, and powerful,” the Frenchman said. “I’m a pure nak muay, so it’ll be tough for him. We are going to put on a good fight. 

“As with every fight, I’ll need to give my best at 200 percent to finish the opponent and to show I’m the best.” 

Sana certainly feels a sense of urgency to get back in the win column �� not only to get back on track, but also to get closer to the accolades he’s been chasing.

“Of course, I’ve been disappointed by my loss because I’m not used to losing. Losing is very tough for me. But Giorgio and I are in the same rankings, so there will definitely be a time to take my revenge,” Sana said.  

“It is definitely my goal to get the ONE Championship belt. I’ll do anything, and I’ll get to it in Muay Thai, kickboxing, and maybe in the higher weight class.   

“In my next bout, I’ll prove that I am a top contender who is tough to beat, and I want to show that I am the real champion of my weight class.”

Catch Sana versus Yusupov at the previously recorded ONE: COLLISION COURSE II this Friday, 25 December, by downloading the ONE Super App.

Read More From ONE Championship:

Samy Sana Driven Toward ONE Super Series Glory For His Parents

Amir Khan Wins For Father With Record-Setting KO Over Raju

Kairat Akhmetov Says Reece McLaren Win Saved Him From Retirement

[topsportsasia]

Jo Nattawut (© ONE Championship)

“Smokin” Jo Nattawut, 29, was one of the Thai martial artists who attended the official “ONE: Dreams of Gold” open workout on July 25, 2019. It took place at the Golden Tulip Sovereign Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand.

Including Nattawut, six fighters will represent Thailand at “ONE: Dreams of Gold.” The others are ONE Atomweight Kickboxing and Muay Thai World Champion Stamp Fairtex, 21, Bangpleenoi Petchyindee Academy, 25, Lerdsila Phuket Top Team, 38, Muangthai PK.Saenchaimuaythaigym, 21, and ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion “The Baby Shark” Petchdam Petchyindee Academy, 21.

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ONE Championship will hold “ONE: Dreams of Gold” at the Impact Arena in Bangkok on August 16, 2019. One of the ONE Super Series bouts on the card is a ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix semi-final bout between Nattawut and Giorgio “The Doctor” Petrosyan, 33, of Italy.

“This August, I’m going to shock the world once again and I’m going to take down this giant,” Nattawut said. “I have my eye on the prize, and I’m going to do everything I can to beat Petrosyan and reach the tournament finals.”

Jo Nattawut (© ONE Championship)

Jo Nattawut (© ONE Championship)

It will be a rematch between Petrosyan and Nattawut. The Thai kickboxer lost to his Armenian-Italian rival during their first ONE Super Series encounter.

“I know my opponent is a legend in this sport and I’ve already lost to him before but I’ve made some key changes to my training and overall style,” Nattawut shated,” “I’m not the same fighter I was a year ago when we first met. I’m stronger and faster now and more well-prepared for our second meeting.”

Here is a clip from the “ONE: Dreams of Gold” open workout at the Golden Tulip Sovereign Hotel:

Ticket information for ONE: DREAMS OF GOLD is available at www.onefc.com.

For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.

Jo Nattawut: I can beat Giorgio Petrosyan “Smokin” Jo Nattawut, 29, was one of the Thai martial artists who attended the official “ONE: Dreams of Gold” open workout on July 25, 2019.

[theanticool]

Giorgio Petrosyan vs Petchmorakot Petchyindee

A combination of bad refereeing, dubious judging, and controversial oversight has led to a rematch between Giorgio Petrosyan and Petchmorakot Petchyindee.

These two faced off in May under what were supposed to be kickboxing rules as a quarter-final bout in the ONE Super Series Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix. Instead, we were greeted to Petchmorakot getting a lot of clinch work in and being awarded the decision at the end of the fight. In a move that shows some amazing potential for abuse, ONE Championship chose to overturn the decision and have Petrosyan and Petchmorakot face off one more time.

The two will run it back this Friday (July 12) as the headliner for ONE Championship: Masters of Destiny.

[tscnews]

ONE 161: Tawanchai PK.Saenchai on Beating Petchmorakot Petchyindee

About This Sports Courier ONE Championship Post Fight Interview: September 29, 2022 – Singapore: ONE Championship™ (ONE) returned to the Singapore Indoor Stadium with ONE 161: Petchmorakot vs. Tawanchai. The card featured two ONE Heavyweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix semifinal bouts and a showdown for the ONE Featherweight Muay Thai World Title.

[soclaimon]

Superbon Captures Inaugural ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Title With Shocking KO Of Giorgio Petrosyan #SootinClaimon.Com

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation. https://www.nationthailand.com/life/40007567 ONE Championship™ (ONE) returned to the Singapore Indoor Stadium with ONE: FIRST STRIKE, which aired live on Friday, 15 October. The event featured an all-kickboxing card for the first time in ONE history, highlighted by the prestigious ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix…

[jtbc3foxsports]

이번주 일요일 새벽 0시 30분 . #원챔피언십 #JTBC3FOXSports . Reposted from @onechampionship - 🇲🇾 THIS FRIDAY 🇲🇾⠀ The ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix rematch the 🌎 has been waiting for! Plus, Angela Lee resumes her quest to become a two-division ONE World Champion against teammate-turned-rival Michelle Nicolini!⠀ #WeAreONE #KualaLumpur #MartialArts ⠀ ___________________________________________________⠀ #ONEChampionship https://ift.tt/2S5WXa2

[phgq]

5 Team Lakay fighters among top seeds in ONE ratings

#PHnews: 5 Team Lakay fighters among top seeds in ONE ratings

BAGUIO CITY – ONE Fighting Championship strawweight champion Joshua Pacio is the top fighter in his weight division, while four other fighters remain among the top mix martial arts fighters but former champion Eduard Folayang is nowhere in the list.

ONE’s latest ranking released this week show Pacio as the only top player in his weight division from Team Lakay.

Folayang, Geje Eustaquio, Honorio Banario as well as Kevin Belingon as top athletes in lightweight, flyweight, featherweight and bantamweight divisions are no longer on the list.

Belingon, a former bantamweight king, remains to be the top challenger in the weight division ruled by long-time champion and rival Bibiano Fernandes, who defeated him in their last two fights that cost him the crown.

Behind Belingon are Shoko Sato, Yusup Saadulaevm Shuya Kamikubo, and Daichi Takenaka.

Pacio is the top strawweight athlete, thanks to two successful title defense after losing the belt last year.

Behind him are former champions Yosuke Saruta, Yoshitaka Naito, Olympic gold medalist for wushu Rene Catalan, former champion Alex Silva and the fast-rising and fellow Team Lakay member Lito Adiwang.

Catalan and Silva were the last two opponents of Pacio whom he beat to retain the belt which he wrested back from Saruta on April 12 last year.

It was a rematch after losing the belt to the same guy on January 19 last year.

Pacio completed Team Lakay’s four-weight sweep in ONE on September 22, 2018, by beating then-champion Yoshitaka Naito to join Belingon, Eustaquio, and Folayang.

Flyweight king Adriano Moraes leads Grand Prix winner Demetrius Johnson, with Danny Kingad of Team Lakay as the second seed.

Kingad lost to the Mighty Mite Johnson in the Grand Prix semi-finals.

Former champion Kairat Akhmetov is the third seed, followed by Yuya Wakamatsu and Reece McClaren, the Fil-Aussie nicknamed Lightning.

Former champion Eustaquio failed to join the elite six.

Martin Nguyen remains the top featherweight player as the champion, who once carried the lightweight belt after beating Folayang.

The second to third seeds are Koyomi Matsushima, Than Le, Tetsuya Yamada, and Garry Tonon.

Out of the list is inaugural ONE feather champion Banario, who ended his four-game losing streak after beating Shannon Wiratchai in the first closed-door fight last February 28 in Singapore, which was also the last staged ONE event.

While seeded first in the featherweight division, Christian Lee reigns supreme in the lightweight division after wresting the title from legend and former three-time champion Shinya Aoki, who is now the fifth seed. 

In between are Iuri Lapicus, Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev, Pieter Buist, and Timofey Nastyukhin.

Folayang is out of the list after falling to Buist in his last outing last January.

Southeast Asian Games kickboxing gold medalist Gina Iniong-Araos is the fifth seed in the women’s atomweight division which is dominated by long-time queen Angela Lee.

Fellow Filipina Denice Zamboanga is the top seed, followed by Meng Bo and Mei Yamaguchi.

The ranking was released for select weight divisions across the MMA, muay Thai, and kickboxing disciplines.

“The rankings will bring more clarity and transparency for our athletes as they chase their dreams for a world championship,” said ONE chairman Chatri Sitdoyodtong in a statement.

The ranking was determined by a panel that included media, industry experts, ONE Championship vice presidents Rich Franklin and former UFC champion Misha Tate.

The rankings were determined after each event, weighing wins and losses, recent performances and quality of opponents.

Team Lakay members are busy training at the Team Lakay gym in Pico, La Trinidad, Benguet even as they joined forces with ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Eric Go Yap, also the Benguet caretaker congressman, in distributing relief goods to Benguet residents. (PNA)

  ***

References:

* Philippine News Agency. " 5 Team Lakay fighters among top seeds in ONE ratings." Philippine News Agency. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1101194 (accessed April 28, 2020 at 08:17PM UTC+14).

* Philippine News Agency. " 5 Team Lakay fighters among top seeds in ONE ratings." Archive Today. https://archive.ph/?run=1&url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1101194 (archived).

[fedoremelianenkodevoted]

Ten greatest heavyweight fighters in MMA history: Fedor Emelianenko tops the all-time list

'The Last Emperor' was the consensus pick, beating out a crowded field of superstars

by Brent Brookhouse Apr 21, 2020 at 9:59 am ET • 6 min read

Heavyweights occupy a special place in combat sports. Dating back to the oldest days of boxing, where the status of heavyweight champion bestowed the man with a label akin to "the baddest man on the planet." While other divisions can routinely be counted on to bring more action and drama to the cage or ring, nothing compares to the visceral reaction evoked when two behemoths stand toe-to-toe.

There have been plenty of superstars in MMA heavyweight history and the CBS Sports experts sat down to debate a deep division full of legitimate candidates for a top 10 spot. There was only one unanimous decision among the votes cast by Brent Brookhouse, Brian Campbell, Jack Crosby and Brandon Wise: Fedor Emelianenko is the best big man to ever ply his trade in MMA.

Let's take a look at the CBS Sports all-time rankings for MMA heavyweights. And make sure to check out our previous votes for featherweight, lightweight and light heavyweight.

10. Alistair Overeem: Overeem's decision to jump back to heavyweight after a stint as a dangerous but inconsistent light heavyweight built an incredible mystique. Part living meme, part constant butt of PED jokes, Overeem went on an 11-fight winning streak from November 2007 to February 2013. During that stretch he captured the Strikeforce heavyweight title and eventually made his way to the UFC Octagon where he knocked out Brock Lesnar in the first round of one of the most visually stunning matches in UFC history. He has gone 9-7 since that streak was snapped but remains a constant threat to defeat anyone in the division on any given night. -- Brookhouse

9. Frank Mir: Had a motorcycle accident in 2004 not cost him his UFC heavyweight title and two years of his prime, it's worth considering whether Mir would've ended up ranking higher on this list. That doesn't mean Mir's legacy is lacking much. Not only did the jiu-jitsu specialist go on to add a second reign as interim champion in 2008, he was a perennial championship contender for a full decade. Wins over Tim Sylvia, Brock Lesnar, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (twice), Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic and Roy Nelson (twice) support his placement on this list. -- Campbell

8. Fabricio Werdum: While Werdum was already a known commodity in the heavyweight division, no one expected him to be the man to snap Fedor Emelianenko's legendary 27-fight winning streak. Werdum did just that, however, submitting Emelianenko in the Strikeforce cage in June 2010. Similarly, Werdum shocked the world in the UFC Octagon, first knocking out knockout artist Mark Hunt to win the interim heavyweight championship and then unifying the title when he submitted Cain Velasquez one fight later. Werdum also holds wins over Alistair Overeem and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, giving him wins over four men who made this very list. -- Brookhouse

7. Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic: Self-described as "right leg, hospital; left leg, cemetery," Filipovic's lethal high kicks could end a fight at any moment. The kickboxing and MMA legend took his talents all over the world, including runs in K-1, RIZIN, Bellator and UFC over a 19-year career. He'll be best remembered, however, for his work in PRIDE. "Cro Cop" took on all comers during his time in Japan and claimed wins over Kazushi Sakuraba, Igor Vovchanchyn, Josh Barnett (three times), Kevin Randleman, Mark Coleman and Wanderlei Silva.  -- Campbell

6. Randy Couture: Couture already made our list of the greatest light heavyweights of all time, but his true home for the majority of his career was at heavyweight. On his first night as a professional mixed martial artist, Couture won a four-man tournament at UFC 13. At UFC 15, he earned a title shot by beating Vitor Belfort. Two months later, Couture won his first heavyweight title, beating Maurice Smith at UFC Japan. He would vacate the title before returning to the UFC nearly three years later to score a TKO over Kevin Randleman at UFC 28 and become heavyweight champion for a second time. That title reign ended a few fights later with a loss to Josh Barnett -- a loss with a major asterisk as Barnett tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. After spending time at light heavyweight, where he would also become champ, Couture made a shocking return to the UFC to dominate Tim Sylvia at UFC 68 and win the heavyweight title for a third time more than a decade after his first title win. -- Brookhouse

5. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: A jiu-jitsu master with finishing power in both hands and a dangerous offensive game from his back, "Minotauro" was as complete of a heavyweight as MMA has ever seen. That's not even mentioning his almost inhumane ability to absorb punishment. Nogueira is one of three fighters in MMA history to hold world titles in PRIDE and UFC. "Big Nog" also owns wins over a gluttony of former champions including Dan Henderson, Mark Coleman, Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic, Ricco Rodriguez, Fabricio Werdum, Josh Barnett, Tim Sylvia and Randy Couture. -- Campbell

4. Daniel Cormier: Cormier has only suffered one defeat as a heavyweight, that loss coming in his most recent fight where the then-40 year-old Cormier was stopped in a dramatic rematch with Stipe Miocic. The loss cost Cormier the heavyweight belt he had won two fights prior by knocking Miocic out. Cormier, who moved down to light heavyweight at the outset of his UFC career, won the Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix with wins over Antonio Silva and Josh Barnett. He also holds notable wins over Frank Mir, Derrick Lewis and Roy Nelson. The final bout -- should it ever happen -- between Cormier and Miocic will determine who is the best heavyweight of their era -- and possibly all time. -- Brookhouse

3. Cain Velasquez: Velasquez's career is a prime example of "What if?" in combat sports. Velasquez is, unquestionably, one of the best heavyweights to ever step into a ring or cage, but his career was severely hampered by injuries, forcing him into inconsistent scheduling, long layoffs and a notable decline in his athleticism. Still, Velasquez is a two-time UFC heavyweight champion, beating Brock Lesnar to win his first title and avenging a loss to Junior Dos Santos for his second run with the belt. Velasquez's resume is shorter than most, but at his healthiest and best, Velasquez was undoubtedly "the man" at heavyweight. -- Brookhouse

2. Stipe Miocic: With two defeats in his first eight UFC fights, Miocic looked like anything but a future contender for heavyweight G.O.A.T. status. Yet the blue-collar slugger, who doubles as a firefighter and paramedic in his off time, began a tour de force in 2015 that has cemented his legacy. Miocic has proven he can be hurt, but opponents have found finishing him another story altogether. His last eight fights have produced a 7-1 record, two reigns as heavyweight champion and victories (all but one via knockout) against Mark Hunt, Andrei Arlovski, Fabricio Werdum, Alistair Overeem, Junior dos Santos, Francis Ngannou and Daniel Cormier. That's what you call a resume. -- Campbell

1. Fedor Emelianenko: Although he never did make an appearance inside the Octagon, Emelianenko's legacy is so strong he never needed to. Why? How about a nine-year unbeaten streak at the peak of his prime as "The  Last Emperor" won 27 fights without a defeat including 14 wins under the PRIDE banner in Japan. Behind his legendary ground-and-pound game and an almost super-human chin, Fedor reached near mythical status. No win was bigger than his 2005 decision over Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic for all of the heavyweight marbles. His 20-year career also included victories over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (twice), Mark Coleman (twice), Kevin Randleman, Mark Hunt, Tim Sylvia, Andrei Arlovski and Frank Mir. -- Campbell

[wearemmauk-blog]

ONE Championship Offers US 1 Million For Winner of ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix

ONE Championship Offers US 1 Million For Winner of ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix - http://mmauk.net/2019/05/14/one-championship-offers-us-1-million-for-winner-of-one-featherweight-kickboxing-world-grand-prix/

ONE Championship Offers US 1 Million For Winner of ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix

This Friday night, 17 May, ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON is set to go down at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Aside from a compelling main event contest between reigning ONE Lightweight World Champion Shinya Aoki and challenger Christian Lee is a bevy of exciting matchups.

On the list of definite must-see action on the card is the first round of the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix, featuring eight of the world’s best strikers currently signed to the organization’s ONE Super Series.

During the official kick-off press conference for ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON on Tuesday, ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced that the winner of the tournament will receive a USD $1 million cash prize.

“8 of the world’s best strikers compete for US$1m in the single greatest kickboxing world grand prix in history. Every single fight is World Champion vs World Champion. And it all begins this Friday May 17 in Singapore,” Sityodtong announced on his official Facebook account shortly after the press conference.

Among those competing in the ONE Featherweight World Grand Prix are some of the biggest names in striking martial arts such as Kickboxing and Muay Thai. These athletes include Thailand’s Petchmorrakot Petchyindee Academy, the legendary Yodsanklai IWE Fairtex, and Italian superstar Giorgio “The Doctor” Petrosyan.

There is surely no shortage of talent competing in this ladder based tournament, and all four Quarter-Final matchups are set to take place at ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON.

If emerging the victor in the talent-rich tournament, which will undoubtedly crown the absolute best in the world, then the cash prize should be more than enough motivation for the participants.

In addition to the exciting main event, ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON also features a World Title bout between Nieky “The Natural” Holzken and his countryman Regian “The Immortal” Eersel, which will crown the inaugural ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Champion.

Also, American mixed martial arts prodigy “Super” Sage Northcutt is set to make his ONE Championship debut against Brazil’s Cosmo “Good Boy” Alexandre.

[conanaltatis]

Vityaz Fight Club’s Dzhabar Askerov beats Enriko Kehl in ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix quarter-finals in Singapore Training out of Vityaz Fight Club in Moscow, Russia, Dzhabar “Genghis Khan” Askerov, 33, of Dagestan, Russia was one of the winners at “ONE: Enter the Dragon.” It marked his debut in ONE Championship's striking-only league ONE Super Series.

[astro-onechampionship]

Top 3 Highlights Of ONE: Masters Of Destiny

The ONE Championship superstars delivered yet another incredible night of performances at ONE: Masters Of Destiny in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Friday, 12 July.

There were exciting knockouts, captivating submissions, and back-and-forth action all throughout the 15-bout spectacle.

As the action unfolded at the packed Axiata Arena, we look back at the top three highlights from the star-studded event in the Malaysian capital.

“The Doctor” Hosts A Kickboxing Clinic

The biggest kickboxing rematch of all time between Giorgio “The Doctor” Petrosyan and Petchmorakot Petchyindee Academy was a fitting main event for the night.

Both men were vying to advance into the semifinals of the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix and earn their place among the pantheon of kickboxing greats.

The Italian legend looked to assert control early, delivering a steady rhythm of leg kicks and left hooks to his Thai rival. Having learned from their previous encounter, Petchmorakot returned fire with precise knees and kicks.

Despite the Muay Thai hero’s refined techniques, it was the steady boxing output and powerful kicks from “The Doctor” that earned him the victory in this thrilling three-round battle.

This victory marks Petrosyan’s 100th career win and books him in the tournament semifinal with “Smokin’” Jo Nattawut for a crack at the US$1 million grand prize.

Michelle Nicolini Is A Grappling Goddess

This mixed martial arts strawweight clash between the two World Champions, Michelle Nicolini and “Unstoppable” Angela Lee, was a long time coming.

Nicolini, an eight-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion, was on a mission to keep the contest where she preferred – on the mat — and she displayed that aggression right from the opening bell.

While the ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion was able to thwart several of Nicolini’s grappling moves, the Sao Paolo native rarely looked troubled and was able to pass guard expertly in the second round to land clean strikes on her opponent.

Even with Lee’s successful reversals, the Brazilian’s relentless and dominant ground performance over the course of three rounds were the keys to her remarkable win.

Along with a submission win in a grappling tournament three years ago, Nicolini now earns the distinction of being the first woman to defeat “Unstoppable” twice.

Janet Todd Delivers A Stinging Defeat To “Killer Bee”

Muay Thai star Janet “JT” Todd and former ONE Atomweight Kickboxing World Champion “Killer Bee” Chuang Kai Ting clashed in an epic ONE Super Series women’s atomweight kickboxing bout.

The Japanese-American showcased some of her signature striking ability, as she unloaded jab-cross combinations, chopping leg kicks, and knees at her Chinese rival.

Chuang threw caution to the wind in the second stanza, and launched wild jabs and kicks as the fast and furious action came to a close after the third round.

It was a fierce battle, but Todd’s poise and tactical striking earned her the unanimous decision win.

With this victory, the California resident is now back in the hunt for a title rematch with two-sport ONE World Champion Stamp Fairtex.

[topsportsasia]

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*Results and photos to be added after the bout. Stay tuned. 

Russia and Germany were among the 19 countries represented at “ONE: Enter the Dragon” on May 17, 2019. ONE Championship held the combat sports event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore.

Featuring 10 mixed martial arts matches and six ONE Super Series contests, which were six kickboxing bouts, “ONE: Enter the Dragon” was the Singapore-based martial arts organization’s second event in 2019 that took place in Singapore. The fifth bout was between Dzhabar “Genghis Khan” Askerov, 33, of Russia and Enriko “The Hurricane” Kehl, 27, of Germany.

Askerov and Kehl solely represented Russia and Germany, respectively, at “ONE: Enter the Dragon.” Australia, Argentina, Brazil, China, France, India, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Moldova, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine and the United States were also represented.

Blue Corner

Kehl

Red Corner

Askerov

Fight Result

The match between Askerov and Kehl was one of the four quarter-final bouts of the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix at “ONE: Enter the Dragon.”

[RESULT TO BE ADDED HERE]

Askerov: 107 wins, 35 losses and 2 draws

Kehl: 48 wins, 14 losses and 2 draws

“ONE: Enter the Dragon” Main Events

Both fighting out of the Netherlands, Nieky “The Natural” Holzken, 34, and Regian “The Immortal” Eersel, 25, competed for the inaugural ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Championship in the co-main event. [RESULT TO BE ADDED HERE]

Christian “The Warrior” Lee, 20, of Singapore challenged reigning ONE Lightweight World Championship: Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki, 35, of Japan in the main event. [RESULT TO BE ADDED HERE]

Check the complete results for “ONE: Enter the Dragon” on Conan Daily.

[PHOTOS] Russia vs Germany: Dzhabar Askerov, Enriko Kehl fight at ‘ONE: Enter the Dragon’ in Singapore *Results and photos to be added after the bout. Stay tuned.  Russia and Germany were among the 19 countries represented at "ONE: Enter the Dragon" on May 17, 2019.

[flauntpage]

Kid Yamamoto: a Hero's Hero

The bafflingly named Hero’s was launched in 2005 as an offshoot of the great kickboxing promotion, K-1. An ultra successful crossover event with PRIDE FC in 2002 had left the K-1 big wigs thinking that they had better start working their way into this mixed martial arts malarkey and so Hero’s became K-1’s MMA arm.

Revisiting the run of Hero’s events it is strange to realize that the company was only around for a couple of years—from March 2005 until December 2007. DREAM lasted longer, PRIDE had been going for almost a decade when Hero’s started up and ended the same year, and even the youngest Japanese promotion, Rizin, has outlasted Hero’s at this point. Yet in those three years, Hero’s gave us some of the more memorable moments in Japanese MMA.

Kazushi Sakuraba abandoned PRIDE—the house that he had built—in order to join Hero’s, returning from the brink of defeat against Kestutis Smirnovas and losing in one of the sketchiest bouts of all time to a greased up Yoshihiro Akiyama. Genki Sudo found a home in Hero’s and was able to employ more and more theater in his legendary entrances to the point that he eventually abandoned fighting altogether and formed a successful pop group. Theater and narratives are a large part of fighting, but in terms of raw talent there was one man who stood out from the herd in Hero’s and whose highlight reels could be pulled up on YouTube at any point to convince friends that there was a future to this MMA thing: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto.

A Bolt from the Blue

By the time that Hero’s announced its first grand prix, Yamamoto had already established something of a reputation as Japanese MMA’s bad boy—hitting opponents late after having knocked them out and living a dramatic life outside of the ring. He had dabbled in kickboxing in 2004 with a victory over Takehiro Murahama and a surprisingly competitive and dramatic fight with the great Masato on New Year's Eve. But as far as MMA went, there was an awful lot of hype and fans just weren’t sure they had seen enough to justify it yet.

Yamamoto had competed successfully in Shooto but had never won a Shooto title—pretty much a rite of passage for a Japanese MMA prospect. Scouted by K-1, Yamamoto found himself in a similar position to Tenshin Nasukawa’s modern position in Rizin—the company liked him but weren’t finding him suitable opponents or building a division for him to compete in. Yamamoto went from fighting the formidable Jeff Curran (16-5-1) in Icon Sport in May of 2003 to taking three fights against opponents with no MMA record in K-1 through to 2005.

Kid was a potential star, but fighting nobodies wasn’t going to get him anywhere and he knew this. So when Hero’s announced their middleweight grand prix, Yamamoto decided to take a crack at Hero’s’s first belt. Hero’s followed the Japanese tradition of making up its own weightclasses that deliberately didn’t conform with anyone else’s, so middleweight was in fact 75 kilograms or 165 pounds. This meant that Hero’s could enlist the services of the excellent lightweights Genki Sudo and Caol Uno to legitimize their first tournament. The tournament would have been even better had Joachim Hansen not been poached by PRIDE just before it began. Kid Yamamoto, however, was not a respected lightweight—he was a bantamweight at best who floated up to featherweight to get fights.

As far as ballsy moves go, Yamamoto’s decision to enter the Hero’s middleweight grand prix was one of the ballsiest in MMA. Though he was 5'4" on a good day, the tournament quickly stopped being about Yamamoto being undersized and became about the rest of the fighters being underpowered.

The Yamamoto clan are now a wrestling dynasty: the father, Ikuei Yamamoto had competed in the Munich Olympics, the elder sister Miyuu is a three time world champion, and Norifumi’s younger sister, Seiko is a four time world champion who achieved a bronze in the ADCC no gi grappling world championships eleven years after her last world title in wrestling. While Norifumi missed out on a serious wrestling career, he was able to put his talent to use in learning the MMA game and also entered The Contenders, a grappling tournament wherein he bested judo submissions wizard Koji Komuro. Throughout the 2005 grand prix, fans were treated to numerous instances of Yamamoto throwing around larger opponents in styles that didn’t always make sense to the eyes. The sight of Yamamoto holding Royler Gracie’s toes about an inch off the floor in a standing guillotine will always be hilarious.

We can never pretend that Yamamoto was a striking savant—his game was the leaping right hook and some hard kicks and that was about it. But what Yamamoto did have was ridiculous speed. Almost everyone he fought would inevitably try to kick or knee him in the head and he would return with his right hook—often wound up from far behind him—before they could get their foot back to the ground.

On the first night of the Hero’s grand prix, Yamamoto knocked Royler Gracie stiff with a right hook to the jaw, then took on Japanese MMA legend Caol Uno in the second round, forcing a TKO due to cuts over Uno’s left eye from stiff right straights and hooks. Genki Sudo had worked through his half of the bracket, submitting Kazuyuki Miyata and Hiroyuki Takaya and this set up a Yamamoto-Sudo final at K-1 Premium Dynamite 2005. The bout headlined K-1’s year-ending show at the Osaka Dome on a card containing kickboxing legends like Ernesto Hoost and Semmy Schilt. After a very tentative few minutes, Yamamoto finally caught the grappling savant with a right hook as he came in and sent him to the mat. Flurrying for the finish, Yamamoto’s finest moment was somewhat undercut by a premature stoppage. Yet the accomplishment has never been replicated: a fighter going up two weightclasses to run through a tournament with two fights in one night, stopping each opponent.

Yamamoto’s career peaked with his victory in the 2005 grand prix, but injuries and strange matchmaking left us with a great many unanswered questions. There was occasional talk about a possible match up between Yamamoto and PRIDE’s lightweight king, Takanori Gomi. Others wanted to see Yamamoto in with Urijah Faber, a trailblazer in the featherweight class in the United States. But while those match ups were complicated by the fighters being under different promotions, Hero’s did a bad job of finding Yamamoto opponents even under the same banner. The Genki Sudo rematch never happened and Sudo retired in 2007, but perhaps more surprisingly Gesias ‘JZ’ Cavalcante won the two subsequent Hero’s tournaments in Yamamoto’s division and that eagerly anticipated fight never materialized. Yamamoto had proven that he was the star and after starching Kazuyuki Miyata with the finest and quickest flying knee ever to grace MMA, Yamamoto wanted to return to his natural weight class.

Try to take note of where Yamamoto’s right foot last touches the mat before the knee, and then where it lands afterwards. There are some who attest that Yamamoto might have been the greatest raw athlete to ever compete in MMA. Watching Yamamoto hammer the heavy bag is one of the more impressive sights this writer has seen in the gym.

Hero’s best efforts were pretty bad. At featherweight, Yamamoto was matched against the 0-0-0 wrestler, Istvan Majoros in a fight so lopsided that he felt bad about punching the guy.

Another interesting quirk of Yamamoto’s game, he was a murderer with knees to the body out of the double collar tie, even against much taller opponents like Caol Uno.

Then on the same night that JZ Cavalcante won the 2007 grand prix, Yamamoto fought the 1-1 Bibiano Fernandes in the co-main event—his first fight at bantamweight. Fernandes went on to become something very special indeed over the coming years, but it was a truly weird piece of matchmaking at the time.

The last great showing Yamamoto had came against the formidable Rani Yahya on the last night of 2009. Yahya then had a 12-3 MMA record, had won gold at ADCC earlier in the year, and was fresh off a decision loss to Chase Beebe for the WEC bantamweight championship. Yamamoto, looking more polished and thoughtful, set to work with hard kicks and counter punches. He dug body shots with his left hand and dipped out after his right hooks. It was one of Yamamoto’s smoothest performances in the ring, and he handed Yahya his first knockout loss in the second round.

A surprisingly smooth and measured Yamamoto.

Then Yamamoto injured his knee and was out for two years. The Kid of old never came back. He fought Joe Warren in the opening round of the DREAM featherweight grand prix (back up a weight class) on his return in 2009 but lost a split decision to the American wrestler. A decision loss to the unremarkable Masanori Kanehara followed wherein Yamamoto was dropped on his face. His feet were so much slower and it was becoming clear that his chin was not up to it any more. In almost all of his remaining fights Yamamoto’s chin looked shaky and he just didn’t seem to have that electricity that made him impossible to look away from in 2005. In a passing of the torch moment, Yamamoto—MMA’s most notorious little man—met Demetrious Johnson in February 2011 and was handily outworked. The men Yamamoto was struggling against by the very end of his career likely wouldn’t have laid a glove on him at his best, but that is the nature of fighting.

In truth, to many fans Yamamoto remains a case of untested potential similar to the late Kevin Randleman but with a far more successful run in the fights he did have. But even as his abilities waned, Kid Yamamoto impacted the future of Japanese MMA even as it was entering a sleepy, post-PRIDE hibernation. Yamamoto had built his own gym to train on his own terms and as his own career wound down, successful youngsters began to trickle out of the small Yamamoto Sports Academy: the respectable Issei Tamura, the wily Kotetsu Boku, and the hot young prospect Yusuke Yachi to name a few. Kyoji Horiguchi was a quiet gym rat at the YSA through his teens, often found behind the front desk or teaching the kids wrestling classes, and now he is the best fighter Japan has perhaps ever produced. If you have any doubt of Yamamoto’s direct influence on Horiguchi, watch Horiguchi’s Shooto run wherein he looks the spitting image of Kid, leaping in behind lead hooks over and over again. Even years before Horiguchi began competing, Killer Bee gym (as it was in its previous incarnation) was the training grounds of the fearsome Akira Kikuchi—often regarded as one of the big “what ifs” of Japanese MMA. Yamamoto’s elder sister Miyuu and her son—Kid’s nephew, Erson, also fight out of the YSA. Rizin undoubtedly has a lot to thank Norifumi Yamamoto for, even if he never fought under their banner.

As he became more of an occasional competitor, Yamamoto also continued to explore his love of art and tattoos, coming into each bout more beautifully decorated than the last, with stunning shorts to match. In a sport full of atrocious ink with almost half of the fighters you see having their own name tattooed across their back lest they forget, Yamamoto’s ink stood out as genuine art. Strangely enough Yamamoto also began working on a curry restaurant in his semi-retirement, hilariously named Curry Shower, but just as the Kid was starting his second act he was cut down by cancer.

For the past few years, we have all been writing about Kid Yamamoto as an old man because in the fight game he was. One of the guilty pleasures of any fight writer is cracking wise about "old timers" and then being forced to eat crow if they can turn back the clock for one night. That’s the way it is supposed to be: 40-year-old men aren’t supposed to be able to keep up with 25-year-old kids. The heartbreaking thing is that in any other way of looking at it, in any other aspect of life, Kid Yamamoto was not an old man. He wasn’t even middle aged. The name ‘Kid’ had started to seem silly by the time Yamamoto hit 30, but to Miyuu Yamamoto he was still just her little brother, and to Ikuei Yamamoto, I’m sure Norifumi was still his baby boy.

Kid Yamamoto: a Hero's Hero published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[soclaimon]

Sitthichai Eager to Prove He is the Best Fighter in the World #SootinClaimon.Com

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