5 best performances from ONE Championship: Only The Brave

Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong (left) and Chingiz Allazov (right) will face each other in ONE's featherweight kickboxing Grand Prix finals. (Images courtesy of ONE Championship)
Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong (left) and Chingiz Allazov (right) will face each other in ONE's featherweight kickboxing Grand Prix finals. (Images courtesy of ONE Championship)

#4. ONE Championship heavyweight kickboxer Rade Opacic overwhelms Françesko Xhaja

Serbian ONE Championship heavyweight kickboxer Rade Opacic demolished his foe, Françesko Xhaja inside two rounds, earning him a performance bonus. Opacic utilized lockdown defense with his hands firmly guarding his face while stalking Xhaja.

As he threw his combinations, Opacic wowed onlookers with his high level of technique mixed with power. Watching him throw his strikes is like watching him hit pads in training. No wind-up or extra movement; everything thrown from inside the chamber with perfect technique.

The Serbian kickboxing savant earned a total of four knockdowns, one in the first round and three in the second. His combinations almost always end with a left hook to the liver that would make boxing icon 'Irish' Micky Ward proud. This proved too much for Xhaja as he fell for a third straight time, earning Opacic the automatic TKO win.

Watch the full fight highlights here:

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#3. ONE Championship welterweight Hiroyuki Tetsuka earns another late-game knockout

If The Hulk ever decided to quit The Avengers and start MMA, he'd probably fight exactly like Hiroyuki 'The Japanese Beast' Tetsuka. Everything the Japanese warrior throws seems to have the intention of smashing his opponents to pieces. His punches are heavy and his blast double leg is so powerful you'd think he'd break through his opponent's torso.

Everything has power and it's remarkable how Tetsuka maintains his cardio till the final bell. This was on full display in his fight against Brazilian Edson Marques. Similar to Tetsuka's third-round stoppage of Agilan Thani last year, he caught Marques with a stepping left hook that ended the fight in the final round.

After the fight, the Japanese wild man called out former ONE Championship welterweight champion Zebastian Kadestam and Yoshihiro Akiyama. Now, those two fights are going to be barnbuners for sure.

Watch the full fight highlights here:

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