Jean Claude Saclag was outgrappled by Uzbekistan’s Otabek Rajabov in the final of the men’s traditional mixed martial arts -65kg division, losing by unanimous decision to settle for silver in the 20th Asian Games on Tuesday at the Nagoya City Inae Sports Center.
Rajabov, a 23-year-old grappler with a perfect 6-0 professional record, completely controlled the bout on the mat, taking down Saclag in every round.
It was a dominant run for Rajabov, who capped his campaign with the gold medal.
Still, it was a gallant stand by Saclag, who claimed his second Asian Games silver medal after finishing runner-up in wushu in 2014.
Saclag dominated Saudi Arabia’s Saud Fawaz Almolhem in the quarterfinals before beating hometown bet Daisuke Murayama in the semifinals.
The Philippines’ MMA team also won a silver medal on Monday through Carlos Alvarez.
