Singapore: Roshan Mainam, hailing from Manipur in India, on Friday defeated ONE Hefei Flyweight Tournament Champion Liu Peng Shuai. Mainam's comprehensive victory over his rival proved that he is a force in the flyweight division in the ONE Championship in Singapore. The submission victory was Mainam's second in ONE Championship and pushed his record to 5-2.
Manipur's Mainam submitted the Chinese star via rear-naked choke in the second round of their flyweight mixed martial arts matchup, which opened the show at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Liu opened proceedings in the first stanza of the fight with aggressive kicks, forcing Mainam to respond with his boxing. A minute and a half into the bout, the Indian scored his first takedown and began to rain down punches from within the Chinese fighter's guard. This set the tone for the rest of the fight, as the Chinese fighter's every move was countered effectively by the Manipur MMA fighter.
Mainam opened the second frame in a highly aggressive manner, throwing one powerful right hand after another to push his opponent back, leaving him clearly staggered.
Working from within Liu's guard, Mainam smoothly passed to take side control, and then he advanced to the full-mount position moments later.
From the top, Mainam landed heavy punches and elbows, and Liu had no choice but to try and wiggle his way out of the dangerous position.
Shortly afterwards, Liu gave his back to Mainam and put himself in an even more dangerous position.
The Indian fighter capitalized by sinking in a rear-naked choke and forcing the tap at the 2:27 mark of round two. The submission victory was Mainam's second in ONE Championship.
Roshan Mainam, who began wrestling at the age of 9, turned professional at the end of 2016 and spent the first part of his professional career in Indian regional promotion Super Fight League. After his stint in the SFL, the wrestler has joined the ONE Championship to take his talents to an international audience.
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