Rising ONE Championship star Akbar Abdullaev stayed undefeated and claimed another bonus-winning finish this past weekend. 

‘Bakal’ extended his perfect professional streak to 11-0 when he finished Turkey’s Halil Amir in their featherweight MMA bout at ONE Fight Night 22 on Friday, May 3, inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. 

Akbar Abdullaev becomes charitable after the victory by a KO

Through three fights in ONE, the Kyrgyz warrior has produced a trio of knockouts and won a US$50,000 bonus each time, and he shared his excitement in his post-fight interview. 

“I’m feeling great. I’m feeling the best. It’s like a dream now. I’m feeling like I’m in a dream, and I’m happy. I’m really happy,” Abdullaev said. 

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The match between the two strikers started slow, with both utilizing their ground game early on. But the action quickly picked up from there, and a textbook left hook from ‘Bakal’ ended proceedings in the second round. 

The win was clearly important to Abdullaev, but he also spoke about how he wanted to use the extra cash he earned to develop his skill set and help those closest to him.

“I have plans for the bonus. I want to invest in myself. I want to become a better fighter. So hopefully, this bonus can help me. Also, I’m giving some money to charity, and of course, I plan to help my relatives,” he said. 

“But when it comes to investing in myself, I want to have a really good training camp for the next fight – the next fights in the future. Hopefully, ONE Championship and Mr. Chatri can help me, and probably they can help me to get a visa to the USA, where I can get really really good training.”

What’s next for ‘Bakal’?

The 26-year-old sensation has now put in a slew of impressive showings in ONE Championship’s stacked featherweight MMA division. But he’ll need to keep it up if he wants to break into the World Title conversation.

Any of the top-ranked fighters in the division could be a threat to his pristine record, and divisional king Tang Kai may still be a few fights away as a result.

Ground specialists like #5-ranked Shamil Gasanov and #2-ranked Garry Tonon could put their grappling skills to the test. And hard-hitters like #3-ranked Ilya Freymanov, former two-division World Champion and #4-ranked Martin Nguyen, and #1-ranked Thanh Le will certainly not shy away from a fight with him on their feet. 

Nonetheless, fans can rest easy that the future of the fiery weight class is secure with Abdulleav waiting in the wings.