Michelle Nicolini Bests Angela Lee in Main Event of One: Masters of Destiny

On July 12, One Championship made its first stop this year in Malaysia as One: Masters of Destiny went down at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur.

The MMA card featured a non-title, 125-pound clash between One atomweight champ Angela Lee and Michelle Nicolini as the main attraction. Eight-time Mundials winner Nicolini displayed her background in Brazilian jiu-jitsu by moving immediately the action to the ground and keeping it there. After Lee managed to sweep her way to a top position, Nicolini kept working from her back. The script didn’t change in the second and third round, with Lee trying to contain her opponent’s impetuosity. After three rounds of intense back-and-forth grappling action, Nicolini (6-2) defeated the “Unstoppable” Lee (9-2) by unanimous decision.

New Zealand’s Ev Ting and Japanese fighter Daichi Abe squared off in the MMA co-main event. Ultimate Fighting Championship and Pancrase veteran Abe managed to knock down his opponent early in the fight, cornering Ting several times in the first stanza. Ting’s perseverance, though, allowed him to survive through the storm, then fight back his way to victory. Eventually, Ting (17-6) secured a submission thanks to a slick rear-naked choke at the 4:44 mark of Round 2. Abe (6-4) is now on a four-bout losing streak.

Elsewhere, India’s Gurdarshan Mangat (15-2) bested Abro Fernandes via unanimous decision, extending his current winning streak to five bouts.

In a 115-pound contest, Hayatun Jihin Radzuan submitted Jomary Torres in front of a partisan crowd. The Malaysian “Shadowcat” found her way to victory thanks to a triangle choke at 3:07 of the first round.

In the first MMA fight of the main card, American Troy Worthen (5-0) managed to make a successful One debut and maintain his spotless record by crushing Rui Chen with ground-and-pound in the second stanza of their bantamweight encounter.