“I need to take him down” - Shamil Gasanov says his wrestling game was crucial to negating Halil Amir’s devastating stand-up

Shamil Gasanov knew there was only one way to negate Halil Amir's devastating knockout power when they squared off at ONE Fight Night 26.

The Russian grappling machine scored a crucial unanimous decision win over Amir in their featherweight MMA matchup this past weekend at the historic Lumpinee Stadium.

In his post-fight interviews, Gasanov said he relied heavily on his wrestling to not only subdue Amir but also dominate the Turkish knockout machine on the ground.

Shamil Gasanov pointed out that he wanted to wear down and practically drain Amir's gas tank with his suffocating ground game during their three-round matchup.

"Wrestling was an integral part of my game plan from the start. I needed to take him down and make him work on the ground to wear him out."

Gasanov, the fourth-ranked featherweight MMA contender, wasted no time in dealing with Amir's power and quickly established his wrestling right from the opening bell.

This trend continued for much of the fight with 'The Cobra' firmly taking control of Amir in the first two rounds.

Amir, however, found a reprieve in the final minute of the third round when he locked in a desperation guillotine choke against Gasanov.

Despite his late effort, Amir couldn't mount a considerable offense as Gasanov secured the comfortable unanimous decision win for his third straight victory in ONE Championship.

ONE Fight Night 26 is available on free replay to all Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.

---

Shamil Gasanov wants to compete inside the circle for his next fight in ONE Championship

While he's as lethal as anyone inside the ring, Shamil Gasanov maintained that he's at his best when competing inside the ONE Championship circle.

Gasanov said in an interview with the Bangkok Post that the cage is his territory and nobody in the featherweight MMA division would be able to hold a candle against him in the same environment:

"I'm very excited to be back in the cage. I feel like that's my territory, that's where I'm comfortable, and I'm excited to show you what I've got in the cage."