Filipino-Kiwi Mark Abelardo put an emphatic end to his losing streak, knocking out Emilio Urrutia during ONE: Fists of Fury II, Friday evening at Singapore Indoor Stadium.
And as expected, Abelardo’s dangerous elbows raised his slate to 20-8.
“It was real tough fight especially coming off two straight losses. It’s something that I don’t want to be in again,” said the 29-year-old Abelardo after the bout.
Outclassed during the opening moments of the contest, Abelardo — now 6-0 in his Muay Thai career — went to his bread and butter: his striking. Like a machine, the pint-sized dynamo out of Fairtex Gym bombarded Urrutia with punches and elbows, turning the tides of the match-up.
Losing his confidence on the stand-up, Urrutia tried to take the fight to the ground. Unfortunately for him, Abelardo easily foiled his takedown attempts. With less than two minutes left in the bout, Urrutia went for a jab. Abelardo then timed a perfect standing 3-to-6 elbow that landed on his opponent’s temple and knocked him senseless.
“I could see him reaching, it’s kind of extended. I just timed it and it landed. Thankful for that,” recalled Abelardo.
This is Abelardo’s first win since October of 2019.
Urrutia, on the other hand, fell to 11-8, suffering his fourth straight defeat in ONE Championship.
