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After a shaky start in ONE Championship, heavyweight contender Amir Aliakbari is finally living up to the lofty expectations.
The elite Greco-Roman wrestler has annihilated everyone on his path as of late, devouring his last three opponents in a sickening fashion. The hapless Dustin Joynson was the Iranian’s latest victim, as he was brutalized with crushing ground-and-pound and forced to submit to strikes at ONE Fight Night 12 last Friday.
Prior to his $50,000 performance bonus-winning performance against the Canadian, Aliakbari turned the hulking Mauro Cerili into a bloody pulp and sent the legendary Brandon Vera into retirement with a sound beating.
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In his post-event interview, the 35-year-old said he was thrilled to finally showcase his true skills after a nightmare start in the Singapore-based promotion:
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“I think the next victory I will fight for the belt Well, the significance of this will be completely obvious. You know, I returned to the level that I wanted and based on the practice and my planning for the next coming match.”
With a 14-1 record in Greco-Roman wrestling, Aliakbari made a seamless transition to MMA and won 10 of his first 11 matches. That magnificent start includes a victory over MMA veteran Heath Herring, while his lone blemish came against the iconic Mirko Cro Cop.
The highly-touted Aliakbari took his talents to Asia in 2021 and suffered a shocking KO loss to Kang Ji Won in his ONE debut.
A few months later, the Iranian tried to bounce back against Anatoly Malykhin but suffered another devastating finish at the hands of the two-division world champion.
Aliakbari has looked like a completely different fighter since and believes he has earned himself a rematch with the Russian juggernaut for his heavyweight throne.
Rewatch Aliakbari’s latest victory at ONE Fight Night 12. The entire card is available for replay free of charge for those with a Prime Video subscription in North America.
Here's Amir Aliakbari's full post-event interview:
