Gold Coast MMA star Reece McLaren had to dig deep at ONE Fight Night 22: Sundell vs. Diachkova, but he got the result he was after on his journey toward a dream fight with ONE Flyweight MMA World Champion Demetrious Johnson.
Fourth-ranked McLaren overcame a spirited first-round attack from No.5 contender Hu Yong to score the well-deserved split decision at the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Saturday.
Hu’s speed and power caused McLaren some problems during the opening frame of their gruelling battle, as “Wolf Warrior” sent him stumbling on three separate occasions with vicious right hands.
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But Hu couldn’t wipe the smile off McLaren’s face. The Queenslander worked his way into the fight and took over with striking and grappling as Hu tired in the last two rounds.
McLaren came close to a fight-ending rear-naked choke in the dying seconds, but had to settle for the points victory.
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“Lightning’s” win over Hu represents a significant stride for the 32-year-old, who held down his spot in the talent laden ONE flyweight MMA division.
In the main event, former ONE Strawweight Muay Thai World Champion Smilla Sundell overcame a torrid opening round to stop Russian knockout artist Natalia Diachkova in the second.
Diachkova marked up Sundell’s face with her signature right hand before “The Hurricane” landed a pinpoint left hook to the body that closed the show with only one second left in the frame.
However, Sundell was stripped of her world title after she missed weight the day before, so she couldn’t retain her belt despite the win. The 19-year-old has experienced a growth spurt that has seen her outgrow her division.
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ONE Fight Night 22: Sundell vs. Diachkova Full Results
· ONE Women’s Strawweight Muay Thai World Title: Smilla Sundell defeated Natalia Diachkova via TKO (referee stoppage – body punch and knees) R2, 2:59
· Featherweight MMA: Akbar Abdullaev defeated Halil Amir via knockout (left hook) R2, 2:52
· Lightweight Muay Thai: Sinsamut Klinmee defeated Dmitry Menshikov via knockout (clinch, elbow-knee combination) R3, 1:33
· Catchweight (174lb) MMA: Maurice Abevi defeated Zhang Lipeng via unanimous decision
· Bantamweight Kickboxing: Wei Rui defeated Hiroki Akimoto via unanimous decision
· Flyweight MMA: Reece McLaren defeated Hu Yong via split decision
· Lightweight Kickboxing: Rungrawee Sitsongpeenong defeated Bogdan Shumarov via split decision
· Women’s Atomweight MMA: Chihiro Sawada defeated Noelle Grandjean via unanimous decision
· Strawweight Muay Thai: Zakaria El Jamari defeated Thongpoon PK Saenchai via unanimous decision
· Catchweight (132lb) Submission Grappling: Bianca Basilio defeated Nanami Ichikawa via submission (rear-naked choke), 0:35
· Flyweight Muay Thai: Sean Climaco defeated Josue Cruz via knockout (left body shot) R1, 2:06