ONE Championship is raising the bar with its phenomenal martial arts displays one after the other. The promotion has a collection of the top martial artists in the world. These combatants are specialists in different facets of martial arts. While the promotion has such a big talent pool, ONE also has the best refs in the world.

A referee plays a vital part in protecting the fighters as the third man inside the Circle. It was on full display during the bantamweight thriller between Mark Abelardo and Emilio Urrutia at ONE Championship: Fists of Fury 2.

In round 2, the bout ending sequence saw Filipino-Kiwi land a devastating blow from nowhere to knock down his American counterpart. Urrutia didn’t see the rushing elbow from Abelardo. The impact of the shot immediately put him on the canvas.

Though the American appeared stiff, Abelardo, in the heat of the moment, looked to land another punch to assure the win. However, that’s when the third man in the Circle showed his awareness. The referee (Mohamad Sulaiman.) acted quickly to deflect the hammering shot coming from the Filipino-Kiwi striker.

He deserves praise for his phenomenal awareness and rapid move to put himself in the danger to save the fighter from getting long-term health damage.

Read More – Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida Shows MMA Evolution; Secures Third Straight First Round Finish at ONE 158

With such a phenomenal crew and dominating the Eastern part of the world, ONE Championship is ready to take over the North American region with its Amazon Prime Video deal. The partnership is ready to kick-start with Demetrious Johnson getting his rematch against Adriano Moraes.

ONE Championship made a big announcement at ONE 158

The Home of Martial Arts, under the leadership of CEO and Chairman Chatri Sityodtong, is making big moves after having a phenomenal run last year. In 2021, the promotion secured staggering viewership and engagement numbers. Thus, they are looking to build on that and take it a step further in North America.

To up the stakes and start the Prime deal with a bang, the promotion put the 12-time world champion, Johnson, in what could be the biggest match of his illustrious career. Moraes vs. Johnson 2 will headline the first-ever card, ONE 161, for North American fans in U.S. prime-time on August 26.

Read More – Tawanchai PK. Saenchai’s Vicious Knockout at ONE 158 Secures Him the ONE Featherweight Muay World Championship Opportunity

What did you think of the referee’s wonderful save at ONE Championship- Fists of Fury 2?