Japanese submissions expert Shinya Aoki retained his lightweight title with a unanimous decision over countryman Koji Ando in the main event of ONE Championship 27 in Singapore on Friday night.
The co-main event saw three-time former Lumpini Stadium Muay Thai champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke of Thailand beat Philippine former professional boxer Roy Doliguez by unanimous decision to become the organization’s inaugural strawweight champion.
Koji Ando earned his title shot by choking out previously-undefeated Brazilian jiujitsu brown belt Rafael Nunes in the first round on his ONE debut in Taipei in July last year, then derailing the comeback of feared Brazilian Zorobabel Moreira by knocking him out in the third round in November last year.
Photo courtesy of ONE Championship
Ando also claimed a TKO win over reigning ONE featherweight champion Jadamba Narantungalag in 2013, when they were fighting for the now-defunct Legend FC.
Ando came into the fight with the usual bluster and bravado, telling Aoki: “After our fight, you won’t have your belt anymore, so I suggest you sleep with it until then.”
However, once in the cage, he looked uncharacteristically tentative, understandably wary of Aoki’s vaunted grappling skills, despite also boasting a high-level judo background.
Aoki began attempting takedowns almost from the opening bell. Ando stuffed his first three attempts until Aoki started to work for a takedown from the clinch against the cage, which finally took the fight to the ground. Ando defended well, not giving up any opportunities for submissions, keeping Aoki in half-guard and full butterfly guard, but Aoki was able to land some elbows to his countryman’s head to finish the round.
Ando found more success in a cagey second frame in which Aoki appeared content to fight standing, with southpaw Ando establishing a stinging right jab that had Aoki’s nose bleeding, while Aoki answered with kicks, most of which were blocked, but which served to disrupt Ando’s rhythm and prevent him from mounting a more sustained offense.
The beginning of the third stanza saw Ando pepper the champion with sharp, accurate jabs, while Aoki reverted to taking the fight to the ground, where he was able to gain full mount. There, Ando was able to survive an attempted armbar, but Aoki landed repeated elbows that had the challenger’s nose bleeding.
Round four saw Ando firing jabs and Aoki again taking him down and taking full mount. As Ando tried to escape, Aoki took his back, securing his position with a body triangle. Ando survived a rear-naked-choke attempt, but suffered punches to the head after doing so.
Confident of the win, Aoki provided some comedy in the fifth. Eager to entice Ando to the ground, even if it meant fighting from his back, Aoki twice attempted to jump into “flying guard” before taunting Ando by pursuing him on his buttocks while sitting ready in guard.
The win improved Aoki’s record to 38-6-0, while Ando fell to 11-4-2.
In the co-main event, boxer Doliguez eschewed standing with Muay Thai champ Dejdamrong, but was unable to find success on the ground. Dejdamrong stuffed the Filipino’s takedown attempts or even reversed them to take mount and unleash elbows. When Doliguez did opt to exchange, he was punished with vicious kicks, knees and elbows.
Doliguez began the fourth by landing a barrage of body punches, but his momentum was halted as quickly as it began after an accidental poke in the eye forced him to take a time out. The round was further marred when Doliguez again needed time out after suffering a low blow. Doliguez then caught a kick, took Dejdamrong down and took north-south position, kneeing the Thai’s head until referee Joye Lepiten stood the fighters up again — a questionable call.
In the fifth, Dejdamrong was landing knees and right hands when Doliguez again asked for time out, saying his eye was injured. The Filipino was unable to continue. There was no apparent foul this time, which should have meant a TKO, but Doliguez was given the benefit of the doubt and the fight went to the scorecards, with the Thai claiming the title by unanimous decision.
On the undercard, Russia’s Marat Gafurov choked out Malaysia’s Ev Ting in the first round to position himself for a shot at the featherweight title, while Ariel Sexton choked out popular Hong Kong fighter Eddie Ng, and Shannon Wiratchai won a close split-decision over Singapore’s Amir Khan.
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