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Johan Ghazali overcame some early adversity to bag his sixth straight victory under the ONE Championship banner.
In June, 'Jojo' came up short against Vietnamese standout Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat, suffering his first loss inside the Circle. Determined to bounce back, Ghazali stepped back into the cage at ONE 168: Denver inside Ball Arena for a scrap with Mexican slugger Josue Cruz.
Things admittedly looked a little rough for Ghazali in the early going as Cruz landed some solid shots. But instead of turtling up and taking another L, 'Jojo' decided to fight fire with fire. Letting his hands go, the 17-year-old phenom landed a crushing left hand that sent Cruz crashing to the canvas in the closing seconds of the opening round and added a buzzer-beating KO to his resume.
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Looking back on his win during the ONE 168: Denver post-fight media scrum, Ghazali said:
"Like I said in the interview, you know, when life throws sh*t at you, you throw sh*t back. So that's what I did."
'Jojo' is now 6-1 in ONE with five of his wins coming by way of knockout.
Johan Ghazali calls for a clash with 'The Bosnian Menace' Denis Puric
With another big win under his belt, Johan Ghazali is already looking ahead to the future and who he may want to throw hands with next.
"Nobody wants to see someone tip-tap toe to a decision win," Ghazali added. "This is just not entertaining. That's exactly why I want to call out Denis Puric. I want to fight Denis Puric."
'The Bosnian Menace' is one of ONE's most heavy-hitting flyweights, having gone squared off with the likes of Tagir Khalilov, Jacob Smith, the aforementioned Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat, and reigning ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon.
Do you think Ghazali vs. Puric is the fight to make following Friday's festivities in The Centennial State?
If you missed any of the action, ONE Championship fans in the United States and Canada can watch the ONE 168: Denver replay on demand via Amazon Prime Video.
