ONE Fight Night 43: “He was stronger than I expected”

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ONE flyweight Muay Thai contender Aslamjon Ortikov of Uzbekistan kept his perfect record intact at ONE Fight Night 43 on May 15.

‘El Pantera’ improved to 24-0 with a clinical second-round TKO of Jordan ‘Panda Kick’ Estupinan at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Ortikov spent the opening round studying his aggressive Colombian opponent. By the second frame, the 23-year-old felt he had Estupinan all figured out and unleashed a barrage of crisp left hands.

He floored ‘Panda Kick’ thrice, forcing the referee to stop the assault.

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After the match, Ortikov graciously praised Estupinan for his toughness and warrior’s resolve. He felt the shots he took would have finished lesser fighters much earlier.

“Yeah, definitely. I thought from the first punch he was gonna go down, he won’t stand up, but no. He was stronger than I expected, and I really respect him,” he told ONE Championship in his post-event interview.

With the win, Aslamjon Ortikov is expected to vie for the vacant ONE flyweight Muay Thai world title.

A clash with fellow unbeaten contender Asadula Imangazaliev seems inevitable.


Aslamjon Ortikov says everything went to plan against Jordan Estupinan

Aslamjon Ortikov was satisfied to see everything we worked on come to fruition against Jordan Estupinan.

The Uzbek warrior stayed patient even after clocking the Colombian several times. Once the perfect opportunity opened up, Ortikov didn’t waste any time and put the nail in the coffin.

“Thank you so much, and it feels really good, 24-0. I’m really happy. Yeah, of course. That’s [the] plan, I did my job,” the young gun said.

“We planned this, we planned mostly for the first round to check him, what he can do, check his distance. And in the second round, mostly attack. And I did my job correctly.”

ONE Fight Night 43 is available on demand for Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.