Indonesian-Led TKOs Highlight ONE: KINGS OF COURAGE Prelims
ONE Championship officially kicked off its 2018 calendar of events on Saturday, 20 January.
The promotion’s first spectacle of the year, ONE: KINGS OF COURAGE, broadcasted live from the Jakarta Convention Center in Indonesia, and opened with a pair of back-and-forth encounters which ended in highlight-reel fashion.
Riski Umar Wins In An Epic Throwdown
Egi Rozten, a Regional Boxing Champion from Jakarta, stepped up at the eleventh hour to face Riski “King Kong” Umar, and then proceeded to win over the hearts of the fans with a gritty, exciting performance.
Despite the tremendous show of heart, Rozten was eventually stopped by TKO at 4:20 of the first round, but his fearlessness and warrior spirit earned the respect of everyone in attendance.
From the opening bell, the boxer took it straight to the Bali MMA-trained Umar. Rozten knew Umar was in better condition to go the distance after a longer training camp, so he came out to try and end things early. He stepped in with furious hooks to the body and head, trying to score a finish in the first stanza.
To Umar’s credit, he never took a backwards step, and met his opponent in the middle, with the pair swinging hard shots at one another inside the pocket. Umar was not afraid to mix it in the pugilist’s territory, nor was he afraid to take a shot to land his own.
In the end, it was the diverse strikingof Umar that gave him more tools, and eventually a way to end the contest. As Rozten plowed in with punches, “King Kong” landed a hard knee to the body before a deft right elbow sent his foe to the mat, where he finished with strikes from the mount.
It was thrilling for as long as it lasted, with great performances from both men. Umar extends his unbeaten record to 2-0, while Rozten suffered his first defeat and drops to 3-1. Fans will be excited to see both men back inside the cage, as they showed hearts of lions and chins of granite.
Priscilla “Thathie” Lumban Goal Ices Audreylaura Boniface
There was a lot at stake for both Priscilla “Thathie” Lumban Gaol and Audreylaura “Ice Comet” Boniface when they squared off in the cage. The two wanted to spark their careers with a definitive victory.
As with all bouts, only one could walk away victorious, and Indonesia’s Gaol was the one who had her hand raised at the end of the night.
“Thathie” set the stage for her performance in the first significant exchange of the atomweight affair, as she landed a forceful side kick that sent Boniface reeling backwards. The Malaysian-bred “Ice Comet” returned fire with punches, and tried to initiate the clinch to set up takedowns on the fence. Gaol was too strong, however, and used her base to stay upright and break off to strike.
As she dialed up the intensity, her kicking game began to shine. Boniface would not be deterred and tried to come back into range with her boxing, but she was being out-struck with the variety of techniques.
Eventually, one of Gaol’s kicks landed clean and signaled the beginning of the end. “Thathie” sensed victory was near, swarming on her opponent to finish with more kicks and finally some punches for the TKO at 3:23 of the first round.
After facing elite opposition in Gina Iniong and Tiffany Teo in her first two bouts, Gaol was left with a record that did not reflect her ability. But now, she gets her first win in the ONE cage, and starts the resurgence.
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