Abolfazl Alipourandi ONE Fight Night 31: WATCH: Get a ringside view of Abolfazl Alipourandi's terrifying one-shot KO of British star Liam Nolan at ONE Fight Night 31

Iranian star Abolfazl Alipourandi wanted to leave his mark on ONE Championship fans in his promotional debut at ONE Fight Night 31 on Friday, May 2, and he accomplished his goal by the time he left the circle.

Squaring off against United Kingdom standout Liam Nolan in a lightweight Muay Thai bout, many expected Alipourandi to fight an uphill battle, as 'Lethal' was viewed as one of the most talented strikers in the 170-pound division.

However, Alipourandi pulled off the biggest upset of the night inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. He lulled the Nolan Muay Thai representative into a false sense of security with hand feints, before throwing a nasty kick to the chin and neck area that immediately stiffened up the 27-year-old 59 seconds into their bout.

Relive Abolfazl Alipourandi's mesmerizing debut below from ringside, which ONE posted on Instagram:

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Fans in the United States and Canada with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch ONE Fight Night 31 on demand.

Abdulla Dayakaev joins Abolfazl Alipourandi with knockout wins at ONE Fight Night 31

Abolfazl Alipourandi's highlight reel-worthy knockout of Liam Nolan is only one of two fights at ONE Fight Night 31 that ended in a finish, with Russian star Abdulla Dayakaev joining him on that list.

The Team Mehdi Zatout affiliate threw hands with hometown hero Saemapetch Fairtex in a bantamweight Muay Thai bout, where the latter was raring to end a two-fight skid that dates back to his July 2024 TKO to Nico Carrillo.

After getting dropped by the Fairtex Training Center product with a slick punch-kick combo to start the second round, the latter drew level with a knockdown of his own soon after. With Saemapetch on wobbly legs, Dayakev continued his onslaught to force the stoppage.

About the author

Karl has been an MMA writer at Sportskeeda since 2023. He holds a Bachelor of Arts major in history, which helps him pay attention to the finer details while writing, and also has first-hand experience in boxing. He has a total experience of 5 years, and has worked for the International Business Times.

Karl turned into an MMA fan back in 2011 after watching Tito Ortiz defeat Ryan Bader via first-round submission at UFC 132. He has interviewed ONE world champions like Eduard Folayang, Joshua Pacio, Stamp Fairtex, and Tawanchai in his career so far.

On the non-MMA side of things, he interviewed WWE superstar Matt Riddle in 2021 and his question about Roman Reigns elicited an interesting answer which was widely covered by outlets like Sportskeeda and Cultaholic Wrestling's YouTube channel. He has also interviewed NBA stars Dwight Howard, Nick Young, Andre Roberson, Shabazz Muhammad, Jason Williams and Brian Scalabrine plus Filipino women's volleyball star Alyssa Valdez.

Karl ensures to double-check facts before using them in articles, and reads up on potential topics for pieces a day before. In his off time, he likes to play video games, and keep up with basketball and pro wrestling.

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Edited by Tejas Rathi