Tokyo's Ariake Arena witnessed championship glory across four divisions on November 16 as ONE 173 delivered spectacular World Title action. The historic Japan card featured dominant defenses and coronations
in MMA, Muay Thai, and kickboxing.
In the main event, Superbon unified the ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Championship by outpointing interim titleholder Masaaki Noiri over five grueling rounds. The 35-year-old Thai legend answered critics with a dominant performance on Japanese soil.
Superbon's left high kicks and step-in knees controlled the bout. Noiri marched forward courageously but absorbed relentless strikes that left his arms battered. All three judges scored it for Superbon, who improved to 117-37 overall.
Yuya "Little Piranha" Wakamatsu defended his ONE Flyweight MMA World Championship with a second-round TKO of strawweight king Joshua "The Passion" Pacio. The Japanese champion weathered early adversity before devastating his challenger with grounded knees.
Pacio stunned Wakamatsu with short hooks early before the defending titleholder locked in a guillotine choke. The Filipino survived and made it to round two despite absorbing punches and grounded knees from back control.
The second frame ended quickly. Wakamatsu dropped Pacio with a clean one-two, then hammered him with knees to the head that forced the stoppage at 0:54. The victory moved Wakamatsu to 20-6 and earned a US$50,000 bonus.
Nadaka captured the inaugural ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Championship by dominating Numsurin Chor Ketwina across five rounds. The 24-year-old Japanese striker controlled distance perfectly while outstriking his Thai opponent throughout the unanimous decision victory.
The 10-time Muay Thai World Champion used feints and counters to frustrate Numsurin early. By the championship rounds, Nadaka's combinations flowed seamlessly from low kicks to high strikes, operating on a different level entirely.
Christian "The Warrior" Lee retained his ONE Lightweight MMA World Championship by stopping undefeated challenger Alibeg Rasulov via second-round TKO. The two-division champion handed the Turkish juggernaut his first career loss at 2:32 of round two.
Rasulov controlled early grappling exchanges before Lee scrambled free and landed strikes in round one. The second frame saw Lee denying takedowns with low kicks before trapping Rasulov in a D'Arce choke and finishing with grounded knees.
ONE 173 - Full Results:
• Superbon defeats Masaaki Noiri via unanimous decision to unify ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Championship
• Yuya Wakamatsu defeats Joshua Pacio via TKO at 0:54 of round two to retain ONE Flyweight MMA World Championship
• Nadaka defeats Numsurin Chor Ketwina via unanimous decision to capture inaugural ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Championship
• Christian Lee defeats Alibeg Rasulov via TKO at 2:32 of round two to retain ONE Lightweight MMA World Championship
• Takeru defeats Denis Puric via TKO at 2:49 of round two (Kickboxing - Flyweight)
• Marat Grigorian defeats Rukiya Anpo via unanimous decision (Kickboxing - Featherweight)
• Yuki Yoza defeats Superlek via unanimous decision (Kickboxing - Bantamweight)
• Nabil Anane defeats Hiromi Wajima via unanimous decision (Kickboxing - Featherweight)
• Kana defeats Stamp Fairtex via unanimous decision (Kickboxing - Atomweight)
• Tye Ruotolo defeats Shozo Isojima via submission at 2:26 of round one (MMA - Lightweight)
• Rafael Lovato Jr. defeats Giancarlo Bodoni via unanimous decision (Submission Grappling - Middleweight)
• Suakim Sor Jor Tongprajin defeats Jake Peacock via TKO at 0:26 of round three (Muay Thai - Bantamweight)
• Shamil Erdogan defeats Ryugo Takeuchi via TKO at 2:20 of round one (MMA - Heavyweight)
• Hiroyuki Tetsuka defeats Shinya Aoki via TKO at 0:28 of round two (MMA - Lightweight)
• Chihiro Sawada defeats Itsuki Hirata via unanimous decision (MMA - Atomweight)
• Hiroki Akimoto defeats Wei Rui via unanimous decision (Kickboxing - Bantamweight)
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