Chatri Sityodtong on Roberto Soldic’s statement-making KO victory at ONE 171: “A phenomenal job”

Roberto Soldic scored his maiden win in ONE Championship, and the promotion's Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong has nothing but praise for the Croatian sensation.

At ONE 171: Qatar last week, 'Robocop' knocked out Dagi Arslanaliev in the first round of their welterweight MMA matchup inside the Lusail Sports Arena.

There was no love lost between the two competitors leading up to their fight, as Arslanaliev constantly downplayed the threat that Soldic brought to the table. The Turkish finishing machine had reason to doubt his opponent considering Soldic's struggles since joining the world's largest martial arts organization.

His promotional debut ended abruptly after an inadvertent low blow from Murad Ramazanov. In his second fight, he once again failed to impress as he was knocked out by former division king Zebaztian Kadestam.

However, all those doubts were erased by his vicious finish against Arslanaliev. Emotion may have gotten the best of him though, as he dropped an extra shot in despite his opponent looking out already on the ground. It led to a short confrontation with the Turkish fighter's corner after the match.

During the post-event press conference, Chatri Sityodtong praised Roberto Soldic's win and empathized with him on the controversial ending. He said:

"I think Roberto has done a phenomenal job, a lot of pressure on this fight, for sure. He's had a string of bad luck too, [with] injuries and stuff like that. So that's why he was so happy."

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What's next for Roberto Soldic?

After an impressive win this past weekend, Roberto Soldic may have thrust his name into the world title conversation. However, he may have to earn his shot by avenging his loss to Zebaztian Kadestam at ONE Fight Night 10 back in May 2023.

On that night, 'Robocop' was able to show his dangerous hands in the first round, but Kadestam endured the onslaught and valiantly came back in the second round with a deadly barrage to end the fight in a knockout.

Unfortunately, 'The Bandit' was not able to get his shot against ONE lightweight and welterweight MMA world champion Christian Lee, who had to step away from active competition for a while.

'The Warrior' has since made his return to defend his lightweight crown, and could soon defend the welterweight belt. With both Kadestam and Soldic having solid cases to challenge for ONE gold, could we see one of them fighting Lee or will we see them run it back?