Adriano Moraes Shocks Demetrious Johnson, Retains Flyweight Crown at One on TNT 1

ADRIANO MORAES KOs DEMETRIOUS JOHNSON #ONEonTNT1 pic.twitter.com/r49jMmrx9u

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 8, 2021

Adriano Moraes did what no one in the UFC was ever able to do: finish Demetrious Johnson.

Moraes retained his One Championship flyweight belt in emphatic fashion, knocking out Johnson in the One on TNT 1 headliner at Singapore Indoor Stadium in front of a national television audience on Wednesday night. The end came 2:24 into Round 2, as “Mighty Mouse” was finished for the first time in 35 professional bouts.

“It’s part of the game,” said Johnson, who has long been regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound talents in the sport. “You’re in the game for so long, it’s bound to happen one of these days, right?

“He did a good job keeping the range and distance. He caught me slipping and was able to catch me.”

Johnson led the dance early in the fight, as he initiated the clinch and landed some knees in close quarters. However, Moraes would spend a significant portion of the opening frame in top position following a scramble in the second half of the round.

It was in Round 2 where the American Top Team representative put a definitive stamp on the fight. A short uppercut from Moraes sent Johnson stumbling to the fence, and when “Mighty Mouse” attempted to return to his feet, he ate a knee flush to face for his troubles. The contest was essentially over at that point, but Moraes landed three laser standing-to-ground punches to seal the deal.

“I don’t have words to describe this moment. We did it,” Moraes said. “I grew up watching DJ fight. He’s a legend.”

Illegal Blows Result in Disqualification Loss for Alvarez

Eddie Alvarez’s third One Championship appearance was one to forget for “The Underground King.”

The former UFC and Bellator champion was disqualified after landing multiple blows to the back of Iuri Lapicus’ early in the opening round of their lightweight clash. After a brief pause in the action, referee Justin Brown handed Alvarez a red card, ending the bout shortly after it began. An official time for the stoppage was not announced, though it appeared to occur around the one-minute mark.

Alvarez (30-8, 1 NC, 1-2 One) wasted little time taking Lapicus (15-1, 3-1 One) to the canvas near the cage. The Philadelphia native then wrapped up his foe’s legs with his own and began landing punches to the head. While some landed to the side of the head or behind the ear, a few appeared to also connect illegally. After the initial warning, Lapicus yelped in pain and fell back to the canvas. Alvarez landed a few more blows on his prone adversary before Brown intervened and stopped the bout.

Alvarez was at a loss after the disappointing ending to the bout.

“Iuri was turning his head the other way, and the referee warned me… So you see me take my head and I start shoving his head toward my punch,” Alvarez said in a post-fight interview. “On top of that, I felt like as long as it’s the ear, as long as I’m hitting the ear at some point, it’s legal.

“I’m praying for Iuri right now and I hope he’s fine. You put me in a cage and I don’t know what to do in here — I’m trying to survive. The ref made his call and I’ve got to respect it.”

’Reug Reug’ Overwhelms Kickboxer Schmid

Oumar Kane gave kickboxer Patrick Schmid a rude welcome to the MMA realm, winning their heavyweight bout via technical knockout. “Reug Reug” brought an end to the contest 1:48 into Round 1 with a series of unanswered right hands to the head of his defenseless foe.

After a brief feeling-out period, Kane (3-0, 2-0 One) swarmed Schmid with looping power punches. That had his opponent on the retreat before the Senegalese wrestler tracked him down near the fence and slammed him to the mat. From there, “Reug Reug” battered Schmid (0-1, 0-1 One) with standing-to-ground punches and hammerfists before the Swiss fighter moved onto all fours. Kane continued his assault until referee Mohamad Sulaiman decided he had seen enough.

Schmid was originally slated to face Rade Opacic in a kickboxing bout on Wednesday’s card but made his pro MMA debut after Opacic was pulled from the event due to health and safety protocols.

Magomedaliev Wins Grinding Battle vs. McGuire

Eagles MMA representative Raimond Magomedaliev earned his third consecutive triumph under the One banner, taking a hard-fought decision over Tyler McGuire in a preliminary welterweight encounter. All three judges scored the fight in favor of Magomedaliev.

The Dagestani fighter did some of his best work in the opening stanza, when he landed knees to the midsection and short elbows to the head of his opponent. One of those elbows appeared to open a cut near the left eye of McGuire, who remained diligent in his attempts to close the distance. The pace slowed over the final 10 minutes, but Magomedaliev (8-1, 3-1 One) for the most part did a solid job either defending his opponent’s takedown attempts or reversing into top position.

McGuire (12-2, 2-2 One) had his best moment at the beginning of Round 3, when he landed an early takedown, passed to half-guard and stayed busy with moderate ground-and-pound from top position. Eventually, Magomedaliev used a kimura to reverse position, and he made the bloodied American pay with more knees to the face as they returned to their feet. Magomedaliev ended the contest by threatening with a guillotine choke.

Muay Thai: Jitmuangon Takes Entertaining Win Over Williams

Rodtang Jitmuangnon lived up to the hype, but Danial Williams didn’t back down. The end result was an entertaining muay Thai slugfest that Jitmuangnon won via unanimous decision.

Jitmuangnon, who fights out of Thailand, did his best work in the second stanza, when he floored Williams with a left hook and then swarmed for the finish with an aggressive barrage of elbows that cut his foe near his left eye. Australia’s Williams earned plenty of respect in defeat, and he rallied in Round 3 to trade willingly in the pocket with Jitmuangnon, but it wasn’t enough to sway the scorecards in his favor.

Kickboxing: Kehl Takes Split Verdict Over Allazov

Enriko Kehl edged Chingiz Allazov via split decision in a One Super Series featherweight kickboxing matchup, earning two of the three cageside judges’ scorecards.

Both men proved willing to trade blows from the outset, and Allazov (56-5-1) appeared to have the edge early thanks to a steady diet of punches and kicks to the liver of his opponent. However, as the bout progressed, Kehl (51-15-2) took control behind forward pressure, head movement and consistent combination attacks. In victory, Kehl avenged KO loss to Allazov that occurred in 2016 in Monaco.