ONE Championship: Sam-A Gaiyanghadao outclasses Josh Tonna to retain strawweight Muay Thai title at Reign of Dynasties
- The 36-year-old Thai legend shows class is permanent with display of pure precision for second-round TKO in Singapore
- ‘I felt like I had a good read on him after the first round and I was able to execute my game plan and finish him off,’ says Sam-A
Sam-A Gaiyanghadao reigned supreme in Singapore again with a striking masterclass that left Josh Tonna with no answers at Reign of Dynasties.
The Thai legend retained his ONE Championship strawweight Muay Thai title via second-round TKO at the Singapore Indoor Arena on Friday night.
The feel of the event – with no fans in the arena – may have changed but the 36-year-old Sam-A showed his class is permanent, with a display of pure precision and an economy of effort against the Australian No 1 contender.
“My opponent is scary, he likes to come forward,” Sam-A said in his post-fight interview. “So I took the first round to read him a little bit.
“After that I felt like I had a good read on him and I was able to execute my game plan and finish him off.”
“Timebomb” Tonna had put the division on notice with a stunning knockout of British veteran Andy Howson at King of the Jungle in the same arena in February, which turned out to be ONE’s last show for months as the coronavirus pandemic began to escalate.