“This Thing Ain’t Going to the Judges” – Thanh Le and Garry Tonon Are Aiming for a Finish at ONE: X

After a long hiatus, Thanh Le will finally defend his ONE Championship featherweight title against Gary Tonon in December. The title bout will take place at ONE: X, which marks the organization’s 10th-anniversary event. Ahead of their title clash, the pair shared their predictions.

Recently, two high-profile fights had controversial outcomes- Ok Rae Yoon’s lightweight title win over Christian Lee and Seo Hee Ham’s atomweight Grand Prix quarter-final split decision against Denice Zamboanga. As a result, the ONE Championship competition committee upheld the judges’ decision for both fights.

Since then, ONE Championship fans and fighters are hoping for these controversial outcomes to never happen again. Thus, Thanh Le and Garry Tonon do not plan to go to the judges.

The pair recently appeared in an interview with ‘SCMP MMA,’ where they revealed their predictions. It appears that both fighters are aiming for a finish in their title clash at ONE: X.

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Le said – “This thing ain’t going to the judges… Garry, you’re gonna choke me, tap me, or I’m knocking you out, or something. Something’s gonna happen. We’re gonna f**k each other up, and I’m super excited.”

Meanwhile, Tonon said – “I don’t see it going the full five rounds either, due to the stress that puts on people… I look at both of us as people who are gonna look to try to finish the fight. One of us at the very least is gonna get exhausted from the other’s attacks, and either have to lose by TKO, knockout, or submission.”

Garry Tonon feels confident about him claiming a finish against Thanh Le

Tonon has a spectacular undefeated professional MMA record of 6-0. Besides his last outing against Koyomi Matsushima, all of his victories have come via finishes (2 TKO and 3 Submissions). However, ‘The Lion Killer’ is yet to register himself a perfect KO victory.

Meanwhile, Le has a professional MMA record of 12-2. He is a great knockout artist, having 11 of his victories coming in this manner. Tonon does have the potential to claim a finish at ONE: X. However, Le will not be a pushover. 

In the same interview, Tonon said – “Obviously, I believe that’s gonna be in my favor. I haven’t had any knockout victories yet, so I would love to see that, but he’s a tough opponent to make that happen to. I’ll probably be looking for the submission. That’s the way I would usually see this.”

Regardless of who wins the fight, it is safe to say that fans can expect a finish at ONE: X. 

What do you make of Thanh Le and Garry Tonon’s predictions for their title clash at ONE: X? Do you think the bout will conclude via a finish?

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