Xiong Jing Nan retains ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship

Xiong Jing Nan vs Samara Santos (ONE Championship photo)
Xiong Jing Nan vs Samara Santos (ONE Championship photo)

ONE Championship (ONE) returned to Shanghai, hosting ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON which showcased a series of compelling bouts.

The main event saw “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan of China sending the crowd into a rapturous chorus of cheers by clinching a scintillating technical knockout victory over Brazilian challenger Samara Santos to keep the coveted ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship.

Xiong got the job done in the third round, thwarting the courageous Santos with a thunderous right hand.

Honorio Banario vs Amir Khan (ONE Championship photo)
Honorio Banario vs Amir Khan (ONE Championship photo)

In the co-main event of the evening, Singaporean lightweight contender Amir Khan accomplished the biggest victory in his four-year stint on the ONE Championship stage, submitting former ONE Featherweight World Champion Honorio “The Rock” Banario of the Philippines.

Khan finished the task at hand by compelling Banario to wave the white flag with a deep rear naked choke in the first round.

Edward Kelly vs Christian Lee (ONE CHampionship photo)
Edward Kelly vs Christian Lee (ONE CHampionship photo)

A heated featherweight matchup ended abruptly when Singaporean sensation Christian “The Warrior” Lee was disqualified for executing an illegal suplex onto the head of opponent Edward “The Ferocious” Kelly of the Philippines in the first round. Kelly was unable to continue the bout, forcing referee Olivier Coste to flash the red card at Lee, signifying the latter’s disqualification.

Other matches saw Muay Thai legend Tukkatatong Petpayathai notching his second-straight win in the heavily-acclaimed ONE Super Series, toppling Serbian dynamo Ognjen Topic via unanimous decision.

In front of an energetic hometown crowd, Han Zi Hao of China registered his first win under the ONE Super Series banner as well after defeating Stergos “Greek Dynamite” Mikkios.

In a grueling battle between ONE Super Series debutants, Italian kickboxing sensation Mustapha “Dynamite” Haida emerged triumphant against combat sports legend Daniel Dawson of Australia by way of third-round knockout.

Despite the seemingly insurmountable odds, “Jungle Cat” Muhammad Aiman of Malaysia pulled off the upset victory, handing hometown hero Chen Lei the first defeat in his professional mixed martial arts career. Aiman had to overcome a hot start from Chen, who dominated the Malaysian standout with his grappling expertise.

In the first ONE Super Series bout of the night, Hakim Hamech of France cruised to a huge knockout win over Japanese champion Yukinori Ogasawara. Operating behind a sound game plan and well-placed strikes, Hamech dropped Ogasawara with a monstrous right hand with less than a minute to go in the opening period of the contest.

Setting the tone for an action-packed evening was a three-round strawweight clash between Indonesian wrestling champion Elipitua Siregar and highly-decorated Kun Khmer practitioner Phat “Ice” Soda.

Official results for ONE: BEYOND THE HORIZON

  • ONE Women’s Strawweight World Championship bout: Xiong Jing Nan defeats Samara Santos by TKO (Strikes) at 1:22 minutes of round 3
  • Lightweight bout: Amir Khan defeats Honorio Banario by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 4:34 minutes of round 1
  • Featherweight bout: Edward Kelly defeats Christian Lee by Disqualification (Illegal Suplex) at 2:21 minutes of round 1
  • ONE Super Series (Muay Thai) Bantamweight bout: Tukkatatong Petpayathai defeats Ognjen Topic by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
  • ONE Super Series (Muay Thai) Bantamweight bout: Han Zi Hao defeats Stergos Mikkios by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
  • ONE Super Series (Kickboxing) Catch Weight bout (72.5kg): Mustapha Haida defeats Daniel Dawson by Knockout (KO) at 2:14 minutes of round 3
  • Bantamweight bout: Muhammad Aiman defeats Chen Lei by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 4:35 minutes of round 2
  • ONE Super Series (Muay Thai) Flyweight bout: Hakim Hamech defeats Yukinori Ogasawara by Knockout (KO) at 2:59 minutes of round 1
  • Strawweight bout: Elipitua Siregar defeats Phat Soda by TKO (Strikes) at 2:30 minutes of round 1