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Aussie MMA star Reece McLaren maintained his position in the top five rankings of the flyweight division after fending off the challenge of reigning ONE interim strawweight MMA world champion Jarred Brooks in their battle at ONE Fight Night 26 inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, last week.
Several of McLaren's defensive skills and showmanship were on full display against Brooks, as ONE Championship featured it in a recent Instagram post that they captioned with:
"There it goes ✈️ @reecelightning91"
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This was 'Lightning's' second straight victory and 11th overall under the world's largest martial arts organization, proving that he's still one of the most dangerous contenders in the stacked weight class.
Fans applauded McLaren for his great performance despite having an injury in his thumb and hand during the fight, as users @yusukeossjboy, @chong_ali, @jordyshowtime, and @aeswaves, who commented:
"@reecelightning91 You are the man"
"Reece will have the @onechampionship belt around his waist soon!"
"you love to see it haha. can't wait to see @reecelightning91 fight for the belt on a weeks notice @onechampionship"
"BELT MY BOY HE BEEN GRINDING ⚡"
Reece McLaren reveals reason of moving down to flyweight division
Before becoming a top contender in the flyweight division, the CMBT Training Centre-affiliated athlete competed in the bantamweight division before officially moving down to the 135-pound weight class.
In a recent interview with The Bangkok Post, the 33-year-old MMA sensation shared the primary reason why he decided to cut down in weight and permanently fight in his current weight class, as he said:
"Those boys out there are pretty big. They're moving some weight to get down to bantamweight."
North American viewers with an active Prime Video subscription can rewatch all the action at ONE Fight Night 26 via the free event replay.
