Most Memorable Finishes From ONE: KINGDOM OF HEROES

Srisaket Sor Rungvisai did his best to finish Iran Diaz in the main event of ONE: KINGDOM OF HEROES on Saturday night in Bangkok, Thailand. However, the rugged challenger simply refused to wither and the champion had to settle for a unanimous-decision win as he retained his WBC Super Flyweight title.

While Srisaket didn’t earn the stoppage victory, a good number of the martial artists in action on Saturday did manage to take matters out of the judge’s hands. Take a look at the five most memorable finishes from ONE: KINGDOM OF HEROES.

Rika Ishige Flattens Out And Finishes Bozhena Antoniyar

In front of an adoring crowd, Ishige shook off some early issues from Antoniyar and used her ground game to earn an important stoppage victory. Antoniyar did some solid work early in the bout with combination punching, but once Ishige was able to get the action to the ground, she flattened Antoniyar out on the mat and blitzed her with hooks from top position.

The referee was forced to call a halt to the bout and Ishige erupted with emotion after the victory. It was her fourth in the ONE atomweight division and it kept her 100 percent finish rate intact.

Hayato Suzuki Submits Robin Catalan

The rear-naked choke is clearly one of Suzuki’s favorite maneuvers. On Saturday, he used it to secure a second-round submission victory over Catalan.

Suzuki improved his record to 19-1-2 as a professional and it was his ninth win via rear-naked choke in his career. This was the fourth bout for Suzuki with ONE Championship and he’s now 3-1 during that run.

Petchdam Kaiyanghadao Continues His Dynamic KO Streak

Twenty-year old Muay Thai sensation Petchdam scored his second explosive KO finish in as many bouts since joining ONE Championship. On Saturday, he knocked out China’s Kenny Tse with a left head kick that caught his opponent flush on the head.

The bout took just 86 seconds, and that set the record for fastest KO in ONE Super Series history. The left kick was the exact same strike Petchdam used to finish Josh Tonna in the former’s first bout with ONE Championship.

With his colorful hairstyles, in-ring exuberance and spectacular weapons, Petchdam is becoming a must-see performer in the world of martial arts.

Muin Gafurov’s One-Hitter Quitter

Nothing grabs the attention of martial arts fans like one-punch knockouts. Gafurov delivered the booming shot to Leandro Issa in their bout that opened the main card. It was a huge, sweeping overhand right that landed, and that was the last strike needed to decide the outcome.

Issa was in pursuit at the time, seemingly stalking Gafurov and waiting for an opening to strike. Instead, he was caught flush and knocked out. This was a big win for Gafurov. It was his fifth victory in a row, but it was his first with ONE Championship since 2016. He’d lost his last two bouts with the promotion before competing in other organizations.

There couldn’t have been a better way for him to show upon his return to ONE.

Shinya Aoki Dominates Ev Ting

Aoki isn’t done contending for major titles. He earned a shot at the ONE lightweight belt by submitting the tough Ting in just 57 seconds.

The Japanese legend and submissions expert turned the first body clash into an opportunity. Within seconds, he was transitioning and putting himself in a better position for the choke.

Initially, it looked as though Ting thought he might have had a guillotine. However, Aoki was positioning his legs and moving to the left side of Ting’s body to secure the head-and-arm choke.

Ever the warrior, Ting would not tap and was instead put to sleep. Aoki is now 35 years old and he looks as dangerous as he has in years.

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 10/10/2018.