VIDEO: Indian MMA star Kantharaj Agasa knocks out Thales Nakassu at ONE 160

LockerRoom Team

28 Aug 2022

Indian MMA star Kantharaj Agasa secured his first win on the ONE Championship platform this past weekend. The Indian knocked out Brazil’s Thales Nakassu at ONE 160 to improve his professional record and get back to winning ways.

The Bantamweight showdown between Kantharaj and Nakkasu was the opening fight on the ONE 160 fight card. Kantharaj was on the front foot from the start itself and had his success in the standing. Nakkasu, who is a BJJ and Judo blackbelt, tried taking the fight to the ground but failed to break the resistance of Kantharaj.

At the three-minute mark of the first round, Kantharaj managed to catch Nakassu with a huge punch which knocked the Brazilian down. The Indian then followed up with a couple of punches on the ground before the fight was stopped by the referee.

The comeback of Kantharaj Agasa

In his post-fight interview, Kantharaj noted that he had worked on his striking after his promotional debut. He pointed out that a lot of people had doubted his striking prowess.

This was the second fight in ONE Championship for Kantharaj who made his promotional debut against Wei Xie at ONE: Full Blast back in April, 2021. The Indian suffered a TKO loss in the fight after he was not able to come out of the corner after a round.

ALSO READ | Kantharaj Agasa: My Goal is to become the ONE Flyweight World Champion

Kantharaj has turned his momentum upside down with the win over Nakassu who was considered a dangerous opponent for the Indian.

With the win, he now holds a record of 12-3 to his name. A veteran in the Indian MMA circuit, Kantharaj has an impressive resume in Judo and was part of the first-ever Indian MMA team that competed at the IMMAF World Championships back in 2015.

The Indian then went on to fight in the Super Fight League where he was undefeated with wins over names like Roshan Mainam, Sumeet Khade, Dhruv Chaudhary and Valmyr Neto among others. He has also fought in the UAE Warriors and BRAVE Combat Federation before making his debut in ONE Championship.

What do you think should be next for Kantharaj Agasa in the ONE Championship? Let us know in the comments below.

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