Ben “The Problem” Woolliss might have tasted defeat at ONE Combat Night time 43, however he proved past doubt that he belongs amongst kickboxing’s elite.
The 32-year-old Grimsby striker pushed former ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Petchtanong Petchfergus all the way in which earlier than dropping a aggressive unanimous choice to one of many division’s most embellished veterans within the co-main occasion of ONE Combat Night time 43, which aired dwell on Sky Sports activities within the early hours of Saturday morning from Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium.
For a person who battled Crohn’s illness for over a decade – at one level, he was unable to final 15 seconds on the pads with out collapsing – going three full rounds with a former ONE Championship title holder represented one other extraordinary achievement.
However Petchtanong made him work for each second of the battle.
The opening spherical noticed the Englishman take a calculated strategy, as he pressed ahead and picked on the Thai veteran. Woolliss modified his stance repeatedly, preserving the Thai guessing whereas poking and prodding for a gap. Petchtanong stayed composed, stabbing out lengthy kicks to regulate the vary.
The tempo picked up in spherical two, as Petchtanong moved ahead with combos punctuated by kicks. In the meantime, the Brit continued to brilliantly minimize angles while throwing punches, and he integrated standalone kicks to the top and physique.
Petchfergus lands a left hook
Then, within the closing minute of the second body, Petchtanong aggressively moved ahead along with his pictures and put the Grimsby native on the again foot. The Thai even set a lure – he intentionally left his lead leg uncovered, and when “The Problem” attacked it, the 40-year-old was ready. His counter kick smashed into Woolliss’s standing leg, buckling his knee momentarily.
After they did interact at shut vary, Petchtanong obtained the higher of the exchanges. The Thai’s left hand snapped Woolliss’ head again repeatedly, his kicks continued discovering their goal, and he evaded a lot of the Brit’s assaults.
Woolliss’ document now stands at 4-1
By the latter half of the body, “The Problem” turned up the warmth and the veteran appeared comfy backing away. Woolliss did not give him time to relaxation, opting to throw every little thing athim within the dying seconds of the bantamweight kickboxing match, together with a wild spinning backfist adopted by a determined flurry.
In the long run, the judges had been unanimous in awarding Petchtanong the choice, which moved his profession document to 360-57.
For Woolliss, it marked his first ONE Championship defeat, simply two months after stopping former ONE Bantamweight MMA World Champion John Lineker with leg kicks within the first spherical.
Regardless that the Grimsby star fell on the fallacious aspect of a call, he proved to the world that he belongs with the game’s high abilities and that he might be an actual “problem” for the bantamweight kickboxing division’s most interesting.
Tang Kai dominates Shamil Gasanov, retains featherweight belt
Tang Kai’s document improved to 20-3
In the primary occasion, China’s Tang Kai loved a commanding efficiency, as he completed Russian challenger Shamil “The Cobra” Gasanov to retain the ONE Featherweight MMA World Title.
Gasanov, a near-flawless contender who is understood for his formidable Dagestani wrestling and submission prowess, was decided to take the reigning champion all the way down to the canvas and work his grappling magic.
Tang Kai retained the featherweight title towards his Dagestani challenger
Nevertheless, Tang stuffed practically each single certainly one of “The Cobra’s” takedown makes an attempt and compelled him to combat on the toes, the place the Chinese language title holder held a decisive edge.
The 30-year-old Shaoyang native peppered Gasanov with punches and kicks all through the competition, slowly grinding him down with blows till his physique might take no extra.
the Russian challenger Gasanov’s ONE document dropped to 6-2
All of it reached a conclusion within the fourth spherical, the place Tang’s low kicks had been an excessive amount of for the Russian to deal with. Midway into the body, one other crushing kick to the lead leg pressured Gasanov to crumble to the canvas, and some hammerfists completed the competition.
With the victory, Tang – China’s first-ever male MMA World Champion – retained his belt and confirmed everybody that he’s extra harmful than ever.
ONE Combat Night time 43 – Full Outcomes
– ONE Featherweight MMA World Championship: Tang Kai (c) defeated Shamil Gasanov by way of TKO (floor and pound) at 2:41 of spherical 4
– Bantamweight Kickboxing: Petchtanong Petchfergus defeated Ben Woolliss by way of unanimous choice
– Bantamweight Submission Grappling: Diogo Reis defeated Yuki Takahashi by way of unanimous choice
– Flyweight Muay Thai: Aslamjon Ortikov defeated Jordan Estupinan by way of TKO (three knockdowns) at 2:06 of spherical two
– Strawweight MMA: Fabio Henrique defeated Yosuke Saruta by way of TKO (floor and pound) at 0:39 of spherical two
– Bantamweight Muay Thai: Nontachai Jitmuangnon defeated Felipe Lobo by way of unanimous choice
– Bantamweight MMA: Lito Adiwang defeated Eko Roni Saputra by way of TKO (punches) at 0:34 of spherical one
– Featherweight Kickboxing: Luo Chao defeated Denis Souza Jr. by way of break up choice
– Atomweight Muay Thai: Martyna Dominczak defeated Johanna Persson by way of unanimous choice
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