ONE FC 14: War of Nations took place on Friday at the Stadium Negara in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Nobutatsu Suzuki won the welterweight title with a decision victory over former UFC/WEC vet Brock Larson.
As the fight opened, Suzuki was the fighter coming forward and pushing the face. However, Larson would score a takedown in the final minute of the opening round and landed several short punches while on the ground.
The fight would make it out of the round and Larson was unable to keep the momentum going as Suzuki took control of the fight in the second round. He would control the action with his pace, strikes, and takedown defense. As the second round came to an end, Suzuki landed a flurry of punches that dropped Larson but he was unable to get a stoppage before the bell sounded.
As the third round opened, it was clear that Larson’s gas tank was winding down and he was going to have issues with scoring a takedown. Suzuki would come forward throughout the round and stop all of the takedown attempts of Larson. Suzuki would dominate the fight in the championship rounds as Larson attempted to pull guard on multiple occasions and Suzuki did not follow him to the ground.
The fight would end up going to the scorecards and all of the judges scored the fight for Suzuki (11-1-2) and he is now the ONE FC welterweight champion. His first title defense will come later this year when he faces former Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren.
Kim submits Belingon in final minuted of first round
The co-main event of the fight card was a bantamweight bout as Dae Hwan Kim remained unbeaten as he scored his second straight victory by rear-naked choke submission as he defeated Kevin Belingon.
The action opened with a lack of action as the fighters had nearly a two minute feeling out process. Around the two minute mark, the fighters began to throw leg kicks and that led to an exchange of strikes against the fence. Kim would end up getting the fight to the ground, where he got on the back of Belingon and finished him with a rear-naked choke.
Kim (10-0-1) has now won back to back fights by rear-naked choke submission and six of this wins have come in the first round.
Shalorus wins second straight since being released by UFC
Former UFC/WEC lightweight Kamal Shalorus won his second straight fight since being released by the UFC as he earned a decision victory over Ariel Sexton.
Shalorus was able to take control of the fight early as he scored a double leg takedown, but Sexton was able to work his way back to the feet. While on the feet, Sexton threw a leg kick that Shalrous would catch and get the fight back to the ground. The fight would stay on the ground until the final ten seconds of the round when Sexton got back to his feet.
In the second round, Shalorus was able to get the fight to the ground but Sexton was able to get on the back of Shalorus and went for a rear-naked choke. Shalorus would be able to escape and get back to his feet. After a brief striking exchange, the fight would go to the ground and the rest of the round would primarily be on the mat.
The final five minutes would see the fight get to the ground and Sexton went for another rear-naked choke attempt. He would be unable to get the submission and Shalorus would get back to his feet. They would strike until the final bell sounded and all three judges scored the fight for Shalorus (9-3, 1NC), who has won both of this fights in ONE FC by unanimous decision.
The complete ONE FC 14: War of Nations results are below.
Main Card: (iPPV)
Nobutatsu Suzuki def. Brock Larson via unanimous decision
Dae Hwan Kim def. Kevin Belingon via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:39
Adriano Moraes def. Yasuhiro Urushitani via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:48
Kamal Shalorus def. Ariel Sexton via unanimous decision
Andrew Leone def. Shinichi Kojima via unanimous decision
Kotetsu Boku def. Arnaud Lepont via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 4:06
Peter Davis def. Waqar Umar via TKO (elbows) – Round 2, 3:07
Preliminary Card: (iPPV)
Herbert Burns def. Harris Sarmiento via unanimous decision
Saiful Merican def. Khim Dima via split decision