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“He Almost Got Me From the Rear Naked Choke” – Stephen Loman Discloses the Blueprint Leading Him to a Triumph Over “Tough” Opponent Bibiano Fernandes

Published 11/24/2022, 7:30 AM EST

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Stephen “The Sniper” Loman may have earned the biggest win of his career at ONE on Prime Video 4, but the humble athlete was quick to credit his success to the teammates and coaches who assisted him throughout his training.

On Friday, November 18, the 27-year-old fighter showcased new areas of his game to dethrone former bantamweight king Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes inside the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

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Fernandes did spring a couple of surprises on offense early on in their bantamweight encounter, but Loman knew exactly what to do to get the better of the Brazilian superstar in the end.

Stephen Loman earned his victory with precision strikes

“He caught me from the back, so I planned to escape, and I managed to escape from him taking me from the back. I was able to go deeper, but I almost got reversed, and I controlled the fight by standing up, and I was also able to do my wrestling,” the Team Lakay star said.

“He almost got me from the rear naked choke. So, I thought I’d be caught in a choke. Thankfully, I quickly escaped from there until I had a good position, and I could do ground-and-pound.”

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Once Loman managed to reverse the roles on the canvas and return to his feet, his vast skill set allowed him to touch up Fernandes. And though “The Flash” showed plenty of heart to hang on to the final bell, “The Sniper’s” precision and dominance proved to be the difference for all three judges when they gave their nod.

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Stephen Loman labeled his opponent Bibiano Fernandes as tough

It wasn’t an easy win, but Loman was glad he ended up with his hand raised for the 11th straight time in his career. The #5-ranked bantamweight contender was quick to compliment his opponent in his post-fight interview. And he once again made it clear that he couldn’t have done it without his stablemates at the world-renowned Team Lakay gym in Baguio, Philippines.

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“Yes, Bibiano is tough. He’s a black belt in jiu-jitsu. So we do our drills in the wrestling a lot, and of course, in the ground,” Loman revealed. “We did a lot of drills in there. He almost got me with a rear naked choked, but I escaped and managed. I also wanted to control him when he almost got me with the RNC, but he controlled my arms, and he was good at escaping.”

“Thankfully, I just focused on my game plan and did what I had to do. I was happy about it.”

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Written by:

Souvik Roy is currently a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. An avid UFC follower, Souvik combined his love for the sport and his passion for words to turn his interest into his Livelihood. A Diploma holder in Electrical Engineering, Souvik has worked as a Freelance Link Builder and Content Writer previously and wrote for various clients and businesses.

Edited by:

Rohini Kottu