Drex Zamboanga’s scintillating streak of victories came to a screeching halt as he sustained a disheartening defeat at the hands of his Chinese opponent, Chen Rui.
Both men faced off in a pivotal bantamweight encounter on the undercard of ONE Friday Fights 19, which took place at the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday.
As the action got underway in the opening salvo, the two wasted no time engaging in a high-intensity exchange, much to the delight of the live crowd.
Zamboanga showcased his quick footwork and lightning-fast strikes. Determined not to be overshadowed, Chen unleashed a barrage of powerful shots to test the Filipino’s durability and resolve.
(C) ONEFC.com
Chen had Zamboanga hurt with a left uppercut to the midsection, forcing the Filipino to change levels and shoot for a takedown.
While Zamboanga did his best to brush off the pain, the Chengdu Ashura Fight Club representative pinned the target on the body and inflicted further damage with a hard knee to the solar plexus.
Zamboanga managed to survive and make it to the second round, where “T-Rex” relied on his size and reach advantage to launch an array of swinging punches and leg kicks, remaining on the offensive for the majority of the period.
With the bout on the line, the former URCC bantamweight titleholder came out swinging in the third and final round, catching Chen with two crisp punches before taking matters to the mat, where his ground-and-pound did most of the work.
Though Chen found a way to return to his feet and navigate through with counterpunches, Zamboanga scooped him back to the canvas and looked to fasten a rear-naked choke before transitioning to an armbar in the dying seconds of the frame to punctuate the proceedings.
Despite Zamboanga’s last-ditch effort to salvage the fight, two of the three judges at ringside sided with Chen, who eventually won by split decision on the scorecards.
(C) ONEFC.com
Zamboanga suffered his first loss since 2018, downgrading his professional record to 15-5. The setback also snapped his four-match winning streak.
On the other hand, Chen re-entered the winner’s column with an improved 16-5 slate.
