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Lethal Combos, Liver Kicks and Clean Right Hands; ONE Championship Is KO Central

Nathan McCarter

Fight weekend got underway at the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar as ONE Championship put forth their "Pursuit of Greatness" card on Friday. And it got the weekend started off with a bang, or several bangs, if you will.

The MMA and kickboxing event produced four knockouts that got the crowd going.

Ahmad Qais Jasoor was first on the board with a wild combination that connected and left Xu Dong Ma slumped up against the cage. The victory moved the bantamweight to 5-1 in his professional career and should earn him bigger fights under the ONE banner.

Shortly thereafter, WEC and Bellator veteran Luis Santos mangled UFC veteran Daichi Abe's insides with a blistering liver kick. There was no need to follow up with additional punishment as Abe took a knee and the fight was over. It ended in just 33 seconds.

Perhaps the best KO came in the Super Series kickboxing bout between Han Zi Hao and Ryan Jakiri.

Jakiri caught a leg kick, but shortly after giving Hao his base back he ended up stiff as a board. Hao laced a perfect right hand over the top. He measured it so accurately it instantly put Jakiri away. It was a brutal finish.

The last knockout came in the main event when dual-champ Aung La Nsang mauled Mohammad Karaki to retain his middleweight title.

ONE Championship even threw in a couple submissions for the grappling fans.

Rudy Agustian defeated Kaji Ebin with an Americana, and longtime MMA grappling ace Masakazu Imanari defeated Radeem Rahman with an armbar. But it was the bevy of knockouts that stole the show.

The evening full of finishes sets a great tone for the weekend and sets the bar high for the remaining cards. ONE Championship is the leader in the clubhouse for event of the weekend and with jaw-droppingly good reason.

   

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