Fight fans were able to view One Fighting Championships debut event via live stream on www.sherdog.com. The event took place on September 3, 2011 at the Singapore indoor stadium in Kallang. This new fight promotion is attempting to become a powerhouse like the UFC, but stake their claim on Asia's turf. They are off to a good start by signing big time fighters to their show. The co-main event was a battle between two legends of the sport, Phil Baroni and Yoshiyuki Yoshida. Both fighters have fought in major promotions including the UFC.
Phil Baroni now has a professional record of 14-14. He has a long fighting career going all the way back to the year 2000. Baroni’s history includes fighting back in UFC 30 which was held in February 2001. He has nine fights in the Ultimate fighting Championships, and has won only three of them. Baroni also fought in Strikeforce, EliteXC, and Pride. He has faced great opponents such as Evan Tanner, Matt Lindland, and Amir Sadollah.
Yoshiyuki Yoshida is now 13-6 as a professional. He has fought five times in the UFC, and was victorious twice. He has also fought in Bellator Fighting Championships, Cage Force, and Shooto. Yoshida has wins over MMA greats Dan Hardy, and War Machine.
The Co-Main Event
In the first round, Yoshida pinned Baroni up against the cage for the first half of the battle. He then slammed the fighter out of New York with a precision Judo takedown. Yoshida displayed superior Jujitsu against the seasoned opponent. He finished the first round clearly the victor.
Round two was a little more back and forth as Baroni began to pick up the pace. Although his efforts were no match for the skill of the Japanese fighter, Baroni did however send Yoshiyuki Yoshida back to his corner with a bloody nose.
As Yoshida started the third round he quickly executed a textbook takedown. He controlled the pace nicely then, with about two minutes left he gained positive control by establishing the full mounted position. He continued to shower down punishment blows to Baroni until the match came to an end.
Post Fight Baroni Style
Phil Baroni was clearly frustrated at his performance at the end of the fight. Yoshiyuki Yoshida attempted to gesture a friendly hug amongst competitors, and Baroni turned his back. After the Singapore crowd expressed vocal disappointment in the fighter’s antics, Baroni caved in, and bowed to his opponent.
Yoshiyuki Yoshida was declared the winner by unanimous decision.
Darrell Pacansky - A MBA student from Trident University, who currently works in Marketing for one of the largest Chiropractic offices in the state of ...
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