ONE 163: Aung La N Sang makes quick work of Yushin Okami

It was a battle of two MMA legends on Saturday when Yushin Okami squared off against former two-division ONE world champion, ‘The Burmese Python’ Aung La N Sang. With both fighters stepping into the circle in desperate need of a win, neither man held back in an entertaining war as part of the ONE 163 main card.

Yushin Okami opted to take things to the ground early, shooting in for a takedown. Aung La was able to sprawl effectively and take the top position before letting Okami get back to his feet. Okami again shot for a takedown without setting it up. That proved to be a costly mistake.

Aung La N Sang delivered a well-placed knee that rocked Okami. Capitalizing on the moment, Aung La jumped on top of ‘Thunder’ and delivered a barrage of strikes. Unable to get out of danger, Okami covered up, leading to the stoppage by referee Herb Dean.

Official Result: Aung La N Sang defeated Yushin Okami via TKO at 1:42 of Round 1.

It was a massive victory for Aung La N Sang, who had lost three of his last four bouts. Unfortunately, due to a weight miss, Aung La was not eligible for a bonus, but the victory was more than enough to put a smile on the face of Myanmar’s favorite athlete.

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Aung La N Sang pays tribute to his fallen teammate and his home at ONE 163

Following his impressive first-round victory over Yushin ‘Thunder’ Okami at ONE 163, Aung La N Sang spoke with Mitch Chilson to discuss his win and pay tribute to his teammate Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson who passed away this week. He also paid tribute to his home country of Myanmar:

“So Anthony passed away during this week and it’s been pretty hard, but I know what Myanmar’s going through is pretty hard too, so this fight was very hard for me, but I put a lot of work into it and dedication to it and I’m thankful for God for blessing me with this.

“Thankful for my team Kill Cliff FC. Thank you for all my support from Myanmar and thank you Singapore. I’m thankful for ONE Championship for giving us this platform.”

As far as what comes next, Aung La will leave that up to ONE Championship, but ‘The Burmese Python’ is more than happy to be the gatekeeper for the middleweight division going forward.