“I plan to counter him” – Oh Ho Taek says he’d find every way possible to get past Shamil Gasanov’s grappling

Oh Ho Taek is ready to counter Shamil Gasanov’s superior grappling skills.

On Friday, January 12, Superlek Kiatmoo9 was scheduled to fight Elias Mahmoudi in the main event of ONE Fight Night 18. The plans changed when ‘The Kicking Machine’ was rebooked for ONE 165, leading to a new headliner for the upcoming event inside the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.

In July 2023, Shamil Gasanov suffered his first professional MMA loss against Garry Tonon. The featherweight MMA contender now looks to bounce back by taking out Oh Ho Taek, who is coming off his first defeat since joining ONE.

Gasanov is expected to have a grappling advantage in the ONE Fight Night 18 main event. With that said, Oh isn’t overly worried about the threats that his Russian opponent presents. ‘Spider’ had this to say during a recent interview with ONE:

“He'll probably push with his strong wrestling right from the start. However, I plan to counter him.”

ONE Fight Night 18 will air live on US Primetime free of charge for existing Prime Video subscribers in North America.

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Oh Ho Taek reflects on first loss under the ONE Championship banner

Oh Ho Taek made his ONE Championship debut in September 2022, defeating Ryogo Takahashi by split decision. The South Korean featherweight returned in March 2023 and suffered a devastating 44-second loss against Akbar Abdullaev.

During an interview with ONE, Oh reflected on his loss at ONE Fight Night 8 by saying:

“When my hand broke, the plan didn't go as it should have gone. It was tough for two weeks as it was my first loss in my professional record at ONE Championship, but I accepted it and refocused on training.”

Oh Ho Taek has stumbled upon a massive opportunity at ONE Fight Night 18. With a win against Shamil Gasanov, Oh would likely earn a spot in the ONE featherweight MMA rankings and separate himself as a legitimate world title contender moving forward.