Filipino-Kiwi Mark Abelardo was on the wrong end of an upset, suffering a rough second-round submission (rear naked choke) loss at the hands of Brazilian upstart Fabricio de Andrade during ONE: No Surrender, Friday evening.
Abelardo, who had been in Thailand, had the advantage heading into the event as it was held under closed-doors at the Impact Arena.
But after Abelardo’s success in the opening round, the Brazilian Muay Thai artist surprised the fighter out of Fairtex Gym with a flying knee that busted him wide open seconds in the second stanza of the catchweight bout.
Dazed, Abelardo tried to attempt a takedown attempt, but De Andrade was able to sprawl, turn around, and grab his opponent’s back.
Andrade slapped a very tight rear naked choke that forced the stoppage a minute and 14 seconds into the round.
The 28-year-old Abelardo suffered his second consecutive defeat, his third in his last four bouts, to drop to 19-8.
De Andrade, on the other hand, went up to 4-2.
The event marks the first time ONE Championship held a main card since ONE: King of the Jungle last February 28.
