Folayang captures ONE Lightweight World Championship
ONE Championship (ONE) returned to the Mall Of Asia Arena for another exciting evening of world-class martial arts action with ONE: CONQUEST OF CHAMPIONS.
In the main event, reigning ONE Heavyweight World Champion Brandon “The Truth” Vera of the Philippines made quick work of Italy’s Mauro “The Hammer” Cerilli, stopping his opponent with a well-placed left hook counter to the jaw that turned the lights out on the Italian.
After an aggressive Cerilli stalked Vera across the cage, the Filipino-American took a step back and uncorked the counter that landed right on the button. Cerilli was out before he hit the canvas as referee Olivier Coste stepped in to call a halt to the contest just passed the one minute mark. The victory also earned Vera GoDaddy KO of the Night honors.
“Manila, all my countrymen, I’ve missed you all. Two years was a long time. I’m sorry I’ve been away for so long, but it looks like I can still do it. I’ve been watching Mauro’s tapes every night. Even as I sleep, I watch him train. I watch him fight. I watch everything he does. I know he swings hard. He did punch me in the mouth and it hurt, and then when he fell down, I was pretty surprised. So I’m glad I got that left hook in and dropped him with it. In the world of martial arts, the Philippines owns five world titles. We can do this. Continue your support. Let’s get all the belts!” said Vera.
In the co-main event of the evening, the Philippines’ Eduard “Landslide” Folayang secured a thrilling five-round unanimous decision victory over Singapore’s Amir Khan to capture the vacant ONE Lightweight World Championship.
Folayang dominated Khan from start to finish, punishing his younger opponent with a variety of striking combinations featuring spinning heel kicks and sharp elbows. Khan tried his best to counter Folayang’s offense, but appeared a step slower and couldn’t pin down Folayang’s timing. In the end, all three judges saw the bout in favor of Folayang.
Former ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio “The Rock” Banario of the Philippines overcame a game effort from challenger Rahul “The Kerala Krusher” Raju of Singapore to win by unanimous decision after three rounds.
Banario dominated Raju in striking exchanges while also threatening with submissions in the first round. Raju made it a competitive bout in the second frame, but Banario came alive once again in the third and nearly finished the Singaporean with a rear naked choke. In the end, all three judges saw the bout in favor of Banario.
Jeremy “The Jaguar” Miado of the Philippines sent the crowd into a frenzy with a second-round technical knockout victory over China’s Peng Xue Wen. Miado looked to trade hands early on, clipping Peng with solid punches from different angles. With Peng opting to continue exchanging strikes in the second round, Miado capitalized on the opportunity, dropping his opponent to the mat with a stinging right uppercut and then drilling a barrage of follow-up blows to force the stoppage.
Official results for ONE: CONQUEST OF CHAMPIONS
- ONE Heavyweight World Championship bout: Brandon Vera defeats Mauro Cerilli by Knockout (KO) at 1:04 minutes of round 1
- ONE Lightweight World Championship bout: Eduard Folayang defeats Amir Khan by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 5 rounds
- Catch Weight bout (79.0kgs): Honorio Banario defeats Rahul Raju by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
- ONE Super Series Muay Thai Bantamweight bout: Saemapetch Fairtex defeats Alaverdi Ramazanov by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
- Welterweight bout: James Nakashima defeats Raimond Magomedaliev by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
- ONE Super Series Kickboxing Bantamweight bout: Hiroaki Suzuki defeats Deividas Danyla by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
- ONE Super Series Kickboxing Catch Weight bout (73.0kgs): Samy Sana defeats Armen Petrosyan by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
- Heavyweight bout: Alexandre Machado defeats Hideki Sekine by TKO at 1:44 minutes of round 2
- ONE Super Series Muay Thai Bantamweight bout: Han Zi Hao defeats Azwan Che Wil by TKO (Referee Stoppage) at 2:52 minutes of round 1
- Strawweight bout: Jeremy Miado defeats Peng Xue Wen by TKO (Strikes) at 0:53 minutes of round 2
- Flyweight bout: Akihiro Fujisawa defeats Rockie Bactol by TKO (Strikes) at 4:40 minutes of round 3
- Flyweight bout: Rudy Agustian defeats Asraful Islam by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
