If there was any doubt that Kairat Akhmetov was the number one contender in the flyweight division, it was firmly dispelled at ONE: Winter Warriors II on Friday in Singapore. When the ONE Winter Warriors II results were tallied, the Kazakh notched a unanimous decision win over Danny Kingad in a fight that he never really looked like losing.
Akhmetov caught a body kick early in the opening round and took Kingad down. The Kazakh southpaw kept him down until the bell sounded.
In the second stanza, Kingad was looking for the takedown, but Akhmetov ducked under a wild right hand form the Filipino and took him down. The Team Lakay standout worked his way back up, only to be instantly taken down again.
In the third round, Kingad had it all to do and he seized the center of the cage. But the Filipino was soon taken down with a single-leg, although on this occasion he worked his way back to standing.
Akhemtov clearly had a commanding lead on the scorecards at this stage. Kingad knew he needed to make a big impression. They clinched against the cage and the Filipino attemtoed a knee to the head only to be unceremoniously taken down again.
The Best of the Rest
The fight finished with the Kazakh in top position, leaving the judges with an easy decision. Akhmetov took the win, improving to 2-2 and potentially earned a title shot. Kingad dropped to 14-3.
Earlier in the night, Kwon Won Il (11-3) needed less than two rounds to finish former bantamweight champion Kevin Belingon (20-9). A left hand to the liver did the damage for the Korean.
Stephen Loman got his ONE Championship career off to a good start. He stopped Yusup Saadulaev with a left hand in the latter stages of the opening round in their bantamweight bout.
(James Goyder is the owner/editor of AsianMMA.com)
Jon Jones agrees to plea deal, domestic violence charges dropped
ONE: Winter Warriors II Official Results
- Kairat Akhmetov def. Danny Kingad via Decision (Unanimous)
- Kwon Won Il def. Kevin Belingon by KO (Punch) at 0:52 of Round 2
- Vitaly Bigdash def. Rong Fan by Submission (Guillotine choke) at 0:41 of Round 3
- Stephen Loman def. Yusup Saadulaev by TKO (Punches) at 4:09 of Round 1
- Jhanlo Sangiao def. Paul Lumihi by Submission (Rear-naked choke) at 1:41 of Round 1
- Kickboxing: Arian Sadikovic def. Mustapha Haida by Decision (Unanimous)
- Fabricio Andrade def. Li Kai Wen R1 by TKO (Punches) at 4:41 of Round 1
- Muay Thai: Joseph Lasiri def. Asahi Shinagawa R1, 2:05 via KO (Punch and Knee)
ONE: Winter Warriors II highlights: Kairat Akhmetov vs. Danny Kingad
(Video courtesy of ONE Championship)
ONE Winter Warriors II results: Kairat Akhmetov decisions Danny Kingad
