Garry Tonon expects Shamil Gasanov to be ‘frantic’ once he catches him in submission holds

No.2 ranked ONE featherweight contender Garry Tonon believes Shamil Gasanov will feel a sense of urgency to escape once Tonon grabs a hold of one of his limbs.

At ONE Fight Night 12: Superlek vs Khalilov on Prime Video this coming Friday, the pair of featherweight standouts will figure in a pivotal clash to see who moves closer to a world title shot at 155 pounds.

As far as credentials go, the undefeated Gasanov does have the Dagestani wrestling chops to counter Tonon’s impeccable Brazilian jiu-jitsu pedigree. Well, on paper, at least.

As far as ‘The Lion Killer’ is concerned, the cool and composed Russian will frantically find a way to avoid getting submitted.

“[Gasanov is] only more cautious in situations where he feels like there's a potential for him to get submitted,” Tonon told ONE Championship.

“So what I mean by that is, if we get into an exchange and I get a hold of an arm or a leg, or a neck, I expect him to maybe be more frantic than he would be in a situation where he's fighting somebody where he doesn't respect their grappling as much.”

Truth be told, no one would fault ‘The Cobra’ if he performs a manic display of resistance just to get out of one of Tonon’s patented submission holds.

After all, the American is a cerebral grappler and one of the most terrifying submission hunters in the game, evidenced by the destruction he left in the BJJ scene.

Tonon used that impeccable grappling mastery in his transition to MMA, with four of his seven career wins coming by submission.

Gasanov, for his part, appeared as fearless as they come back in his ONE debut last year against Kim Jae Woong. Then again, he was up against a striker with an unproven ground game.

We’ll soon see if the Dagestani standout can survive Tonon’s highly touted submission game.

ONE Fight Night 12 will emanate from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok on July 14. Prime Video subscribers in North America can access this entire card free of charge.