Not a great day for Johans, as Estupinan, Ghazali both lose at ONE Fight Night 32
Japan’s Taiki Naito sends timely reminder of his prowess by ending Estupinan’s unbeaten streak, Ghazali goes down to Diego Paez
It was not a great morning for ONE Championship’s young wannabes in Bangkok on Saturday.
Johan Estupinan had blitzed his way into the organisation as a born entertainer, complete with flamboyant dance moves, backflips, agile kicks and, most importantly, five straight wins.
And then, at ONE Fight Night 32, the Colombian ran into his biggest test yet – Taiki Naito, who sent a timely reminder to his doubters having lost his past two contests.
Still ranked No 3 in the promotion’s flyweight kickboxing division, Naito lived up to his ‘silent sniper’ nickname in this Muay Thai clash, showcasing some excellent counter-striking and dropping Estupinan with a sharp left hook in round two.
That shot proved to be the difference-maker, and the Japanese striker took a majority decision, extending his record to 37 wins and 14 defeats.
Another upset followed. There aren’t many 18-year-olds across any sport with as much buzz and swagger as Malaysia’s Johan Ghazali.