By Jerome Lagunzad
Filipino MMA fighter Jeremy Miado proved no match to fast-rising Thai counterpart Kritsada Kongsrichai as he suffered a unanimous decision in their ONE Championship strawweight showdown last Friday night at the Thuwunna Indoor Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar.
Fresh from an impressive TKO victory over former strawweight kingpin Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke last March, Miado struggled and was worn out by Kongsrichai, a 13-time Thai national wrestling champion who slammed him to the mat repeatedly and punished him.
It was the third loss in 10 matches for the 5-foot-8 Miado, who took a step back in his bid to boost his title aspirations.
In the main event of “ONE: Spirit of a Warrior,” Myanmar national icon Aung La N Sang successfully defended the ONE Middleweight World Championship by knocking out Japanese challenger Ken Hasegawa with a thunderous uppercut in the fifth and final round.
Dubbed as “The Burmese Python” and boosted by a huge hometown crowd, Sang stormed out of his corner and peppered Hasegawa with a series of tough blows before he finally landed the knockout punch at the 3:13 mark of the decisive round.
In the co-main event, Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Leandro “Brodinho” Issa of Brazil overcame a devastating first round knockdown by forcing ONE Championship newcomer Roman “Boom” Alvarez to tap out via an arm triangle in the opening round.
