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Johan Ghazali came into ONE Fight Night 17 with a lot of pressure on his shoulders to deliver on the hype that was bestowed upon him after such a successful year on the global stage of ONE.
The 17-year-old phenom has earned himself a contract on the main roster through his performances on the ONE Friday Fights series that made him one to watch.
On fight night, the prospect showed that his confidence ahead of the fight wasn’t all talk as he took the moment in his stride and put on a show for the fans inside the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium and those around the world.
From the very start, it was clear that he was in control of the moment with no sense of naivety or anxiousness.
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Johan Ghazali said in his post-fight interview that he knew his opponent Edgar Tabares didn’t come to really fight him from the first punch that he threw inside the iconic venue in Bangkok, Thailand.
“After the first jab, I knew he was going to run the whole fight. It’s all right. Props to him for taking the fight.”
Watch the full post-fight interview below:
North American viewers with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action from ONE Fight Night 17 via the free event replay.
Johan Ghazali details struggle to make weight at ONE Fight Night 17
Needing just 36 seconds to make a statement on his main roster debut, Johan Ghazali passed his first test with flying colors.
Unfortunately, his biggest struggle was ahead of fight night itself when it came to making weight for the match-up.
The 17-year-old revealed in his post-fight interview that it wasn’t necessarily the weight cut that was the issue on this occasion:
“I wouldn’t say it was a hard weight cut. I just couldn’t pass the hydration. When I finally did, I couldn’t make the weight.”
As he continues to grow into his frame in maturing as a man and a competitor, there could be multiple weight classes still to come in his future. For now, he’s lit up the Circle with some stunning performances in 2023 and many are keen to see how he’d do next year.
