Renato “Babalu” Sobral returned to the winner’s circle Saturday at One FC 4: Destiny of Warriors, the promotion’s debut event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Babalu hadn’t seen the inside of a cage since his loss to Dan Henderson under the Strikeforce banner more than a year-and-a-half ago. If there was any ring rust for the UFC veteran, it didn’t have time to manifest.
His opponent, Tatsuya Mizuno blasted Babalu straight out of the gate, but once they hit the mat, it was all Babalu, who quickly secured an armbar finish in the opening moments of the fight.
The bout was Babalu’s first for One FC, but won’t be his last, as he impressed in his debut performance.
The same couldn’t be said for fellow UFC veteran Roger Huerta, who was back in action for the first time in a little over seven months.
Despite a strong early showing from Huerta, Zorobable Moreira unloaded on him in the second round, finishing the fight with a soccer kick, knocking out a downed Huerta. The loss now puts Huerta on a four-fight skid.
There were a couple other notable upsets on the card as Leandro Issa bested Japanese stalwart Masakazu Imanari; and Adam Kayoom, a homegrown talent from Malaysia, took a decision victory over Gregor Gracie.
One FC is expected to next land in Manila, Philippines on Aug. 31.
One FC 4: Destiny of Warriors Results
-Renato Babalu Sobral def. Tatsuya Mizuno by Arm Bar, R1
-Zorobabel Moreira def. Roger Huerta by KO (Soccer Kick), R2
-Leandro Issa def. Masakazu Imanari by Unanimous Decision
-Adam Kayoom def. Gregor Gracie by Unanimous Decision
-Eric Kelly def. Bae Young Kwon by Unanimous Decision
-Arnaud Lepont def. Brian Choi by Submission (Rear Naked Choke), R3
-Mitch Chilson def. AJ Vaa by Submission (Rear Naked Choke), R1
-Marcos Escobar def. Rodrigo Praxedes by Submission (Choke), R3
-Peter Davis def. Quek Kim Hock by TKO, R1
(Results and screen shots courtesy of MMA-Japan.com)
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