Knockout artist Thanh Le on his heel-hook finish of Ilya Freymanov: “It feels good to rip a limb off”

Thanh Le loves putting people to sleep using weapons of mass destruction tucked inside his fists.

The Vietnamese-American headhunter, though, proved he could practically win anywhere after nearly taking home Ilya Freymanov’s leg with a nasty submission at ONE Fight Night 15 last weekend.

Le claimed the interim ONE featherweight MMA world title inside Lumpinee Stadium by forcing the Russian destroyer to tap in under a minute courtesy of a gnarly heel hook.

After regaining 26 pounds of solid gold in his possession, Le talked about his rather unexpected highlight reel submission victory.

According to the 38-year-old superstar, knockouts still hold a special place in his heart, but showcasing his underrated ground game is equally satisfying as well:

“We were just talking about that backstage actually. I still like hitting people. That's a really good feeling. You know, it comes from my roots and my taekwondo background but man it really feels good to rip a limb off.”

Moreover. Thanh Le also wished his opponent Freymanov a speedy recovery, adding:

“Obviously, my thoughts and my heart goes to Ilya. I hope he heals quick and gets back in there and knocks a bunch of people out. But personally and selfishly, that shit felt good too.”

With 12 of his 14 career wins coming by knockout, Le is as fearsome as it gets on the feet. It made sense that Freymanov tried to initiate a grappling affair early on in their bout, which of course, ended up backfiring.

Le, a blackbelt in BJJ under Ryan Hall, sent a chilling warning to the rest of the division that his ground game is just as lethal as his striking arsenal.

Rewatch Thanh Le’s incredible submission win by watching the full replay of ONE Fight Night 15. The entire event is available on ONE Championship’s official YouTube page.

Watch the full interview below: