11 March

TIAL Thang, a new fighter representing Myanmar, took the catchweight title in the 68-kg class at the ONE Championship bout titled ‘ONE: Reign of Valor’ after defeating Cambodia’s Rin Saroth at theThuwunna Indoor Stadium in Yangon on Friday night.

Tial Thang, also known as The Dragon Leg, is a protégé of Myanmar’s two-division ONE World Champion Aung La N Sang. The bout he won was his first in the ONE Championship.

Although the Cambodian fighter had an advantage over him in terms of height and build, Tial Thang showed he was equal to the fight with continuous punches and catches.

Tial Thang managed to dominate his opponent using the body-lock, and frequent strong punches.

He initially continued to strike at the start of Round Two, effectively countering and, at times, beating Saroth to the punch.

A four-time Chin State Wrestling Champion, 25-yearold Tial Thang used his wrestling and martial arts skills to down his opponent in the third round.
Tial Thang pinned Saroth against the fence, applying top pressure, and connected with an assortment of ground strikes.

Both fighters were sweaty and exhausted in the last round,which was dominated by Tial Thang.

There was no knock out till the last minute of the final round, and referees decided to award the title to the Myanmar fighter based on the total score.—Lynn Thit(Tgi)