Dave Bangguigui has overcome the toughest test of his professional mixed martial arts career to date.
The 26-year-old native of La Trinidad, Benguet, defeated Brazilian veteran and fellow debutant Marcus Paulo Amaral by way of unanimous decision in a strawweight clash on the undercard of ONE Friday Fights 14, which took place at the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand on Friday.
Despite coming off a nearly four-year layoff, Bangguigui never skipped a beat in his return to action opposite a much more experienced foe as his impeccable wrestling and ground-and-pound stifled Amaral’s striking prowess over the course of three rounds.
The Fight Corps MMA imposed his will early on, starting off with a bodylock takedown a few minutes into the opening salvo. Bangguigui then secured the mount, giving him the leeway to rain down a flurry of elbow shots that pierced through the defenses of Amaral. As he allowed Amaral to return to his feet, Bangguigui executed a high-crotch takedown, the impact of which reverberated throughout the fabled showground.
The Filipino picked up where he left off in the second round, completely denying Amaral from establishing a rhythm in the stand-up department by dragging him to the mat once more. Though Bangguigui had moments of brief on-feet exchanges with overhand rights, it was on the ground where he inflicted the most damage.
(C) ONEFC.com
In spite of his tight full guard, Amaral had difficulties fending off Bangguigui, who aggressively looked to advance to a more dominant position and incessantly scored short-but-hard punches to the ribcage. Bangguigui converted two more takedown attempts in the third frame, keeping the Brazilian at bay for most of the last five minutes of action.
Eager to leave a lasting impression, Bangguigui pummeled Amaral with a series of punches in the dying seconds of the round before giving his opponent a huge, friendly smile at the final bell. In the end, all three judges had it in favor of Bangguigui on their scorecards.
With the victory over Amaral, Bangguigui improved his win-loss standing to 9-1. In addition, he is now riding high on a nine-fight winning streak. On the other hand, Amaral suffered his first defeat since September 2019 and dropped to a 16-4 slate.
