Desi Rehayu, on top, made a great debut as Indonesia’s first female MMA fighter, with a unanimous decision win over Ella Tang of Malaysia. Desi’s judo background allowed her to dominate — making two submission attempts in round one. (JG Photo/Yudhi Sukma Wijaya)
Jakarta. Two Indonesian fighters made impressive debuts at the “ONE FC: Era of Champions” mixed martial arts event at Jakarta’s Mata Elang International Stadium on Saturday.
Desi Rahayu, Indonesia’s first female MMA fighter, defeated the Southeast Asian Games medalist Ella Tang of Malaysia by unanimous decision, while fellow Indonesian Fransino Tirta beat Egyptian Sami Amin by submission in the first round.
In the main event, Brazilian Adriano Moraes defeated Kosuke Suzuki of Japan by submission in the third round in an intense bout.
Fransino pleased his fans — who had been waiting for years to see him return — with a fast and dominant fight. Once the opening bell rang, it didn’t take long for Fransino to take Amin down.
The 33-year-old fighter applied a rear choke to his opponent and Amin tapped out a few seconds later, giving Fransino a win at just one minute and eight seconds into the fight.
“My game plan was to take him down without getting punched. I saw my chance early and I took him down,” Fransino said after the fight.
“The key to my win was my preparation. I prepared myself mentally, physically and my skills, for a long time. I have made special preparations for three months.”
He added that he would return to his training regime to prepare for tougher challenges in the future.
“I want to be the best. Within my two-year contract, I want to take the bantamweight championship belt,” he said.
Desi also made a great debut as the country’s first woman in the ONE FC cage, winning by unanimous decision over Tang. With a judo background, Desi dominated her opponent from the start, making two submission attempts in the first round.
She started rounds two and three in similar fashion as she tried to take Tang down with judo throws, though she failed to force Tang into a submission.
“I got kicked in my stomach early in first round and I didn’t want that to happen again. I told myself to focus and tried to take her down. But my technique wasn’t perfect and she got away,” she said.
“But I’m happy to win the fight. Before the fight, I could barely talk, and now it’s a weight off my shoulders.”
She added that she was exhausted by the final round and barely managed to finish the three-round fight.
“But my trainer always told me to make sure I finish all my fights. So I continued until my last breath,” Desi said.
In the other bouts, two Indonesian fighters lost to their respective opponents. Zuli Silawanto lost to Egypt’s Mohammad Sotounzadeh in a welterweight bout, while Yohan Mulia Legowo lost in a technical knockout to Malaysia’s Ev Tin g in the featherweight division.
By Jakarta Globe on 11:03 pm Jun 15, 2014
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