ADCC champion Yuri Simoes had an impressive professional MMA debut against Fan Rong at ONE Championship, but in the end, Fan came out with the win.
Simoes began the action by shooting for a takedown, pushing Fan against the cage. He started throwing knees, inadvertently hitting Fan in the groin and prompting a pause in the fight. When it resumed, Simoes again shot for a takedown, this time missing his target and getting hit with a big right hand from Fan. For a couple of minutes, both fighters kept their distance, but then, Simoes shot for another takedown and managed to get Fan to the ground. He held him there, raining down punches until the end of the round.
Fan came forward with some quick strikes to start round two, and a failed takedown from Simoes ultimately led to him pulling guard while Fan dished out sporadic kicks until the referee stood them back up. Fan’s right hand continued to be a threat for Simoes, who got hit hard a few times in the head. Another failed takedown led to Simoes again staying down, with Fan reluctant to get close enough to be threatened. The referee again stood them up, and Simoes got a few punches in himself before again pulling guard from a takedown attempt. He made continuous attempts to bring the fight to the ground, but Fan seemed to know better than to engage and kept his distance. Simoes landed a clean hit on Fan’s head and seized the opportunity to clinch up and push him against the cage before taking him to the ground, where they stayed till the end of the round.
At the start of the third round, Fan caught a kick from Simoes. Fan then pushed Simoes back against the cage with a strong combo and caught Simoes with a big hand as he went in for a takedown. Simoes landed a few good strikes, but ended up on the ground again. The competitors were reset in the center, and Fan came forward with a quick combo before Simoes charged forward and briefly brought him to the ground before Fan managed to get back up to his feet. Simoes landed a strong punch that staggered Fan, creating an opening to take him to the ground. Simoes transitioned to mount and landed a few solid hits on his opponent before Fan managed to escape, forcing Simoes to transition to side control briefly before again regaining mount. As Simoes leaned back for an armbar, Fan came on top and began to throw down strikes as Simoes tried to invert and trap a leg as time ran out.
After the fight finished, Fan was awarded the unanimous decision.
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