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Tom Taylor

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Thanh Le was full of self doubt before his latest ONE Championship appearance, but it was impossible to tell based on his performance.
The Vietnamese-American, ONE’s former featherweight MMA champ, returned to the ring in the main event of Saturday’s ONE Fight Night 15 card in Bangkok.
He was matched up with the No 3-ranked contender Ilya Freymanov, with the interim featherweight belt on the line, and in the end needed only 62 seconds to win, tapping his foe with a heel hook at Lumpinee Stadium.
It was a stunning return to form for the 38-year-old former champ (14-3), who had not fought since he surrendered the title to Tang Kai in August 2022, and one that even he wasn’t sure he could pull off.


“Things go through your mind,” he said after his submission win. “This guy is young, has a military background. He knocked Martin [Nguyen] out quick, I knocked [Nguyen] out in the third round. He takes damage, he’s got no quit in him.
“I felt nerves before the fight, things like age get in your head. I’m a little older. Am I slower? Not as good? Not in my prime? You’ve got to prove it to yourself sometimes.”
Le’s quick submission win over Freymanov (12-3) was made all the more impressive by the fact that he is not known as a grappler. He is so good at finishing people on the feet that we see very little of his ground game.

Slick as hell from Thanh Le. Taps Ilya Freymanov in 62 seconds.
No one saw that coming. Hell of a display from the new featherweight interim MMA champ.
Deserved a double US$100,000 bonus in my book. #ONEFightNight15 pic.twitter.com/r2e68xYlYU
— Nicolas Atkin (@NicoSCMP) October 7, 2023

Evidently, he is quite skilled on the mat, and Freymanov learned that the hard way.
Le said he heard his foe’s leg pop as he chased after the submission.
“The first rip, there was some popping and crunching and some damage for sure,” he said. “It feels really good to rip a limb off. My thoughts go out to Ilya, I hope he gets back in there and knocks a bunch of people out, but personally that s*** felt good too.
“I don’t really give a damn getting taken down now thanks to everyone around me,” Le added, crediting his coaches, including UFC star and jiu-jitsu black belt Ryan Hall, for his evolution as a grappler. “You turn into a wrestler and I get to do some awesome s*** on the ground too.”

With ONE’s interim featherweight belt in his possession, Le is set for a rematch with Tang (18-2), who has not fought since their first meeting, having been sidelined by injuries.
Tang, who is over a decade younger than Le, won their first encounter with a clear unanimous decision.
While Le admitted he recently felt some doubts surrounding his age, his win over Freymanov seems to have renewed his confidence.
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“It’s nice to get the interim belt, but it’s not about having a piece of gold, it’s getting my belt back from Tang Kai,” Le said. “He’s gonna come ready to fight. Obviously, he’s going to be smart still with his game plan. That’s what he should do if he wants to keep the belt, but he’s not, because we’re gonna take it from him.
“The look of the fight is gonna be completely different. I made some bad decisions in that [first] fight, he did some very good things. Doesn’t matter what good things he does next time.
“I’m gonna fight better, beat him up and take that belt.”


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Thanh Le locks in a heel hook against Ilya Freymanov at ONE Fight Night 15 in Bangkok. Photos: ONE Championship

Thanh Le throws a kick at Ilya Freymanov at ONE Fight Night 15 in Bangkok, Thailand. Photo: ONE Championship

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Tawanchai embraces Jo Nattawaut after their kickboxing match at ONE Fight Night 15. Photos: ONE Championship

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Jo Nattawut kicks Tawanchai’s inside leg.

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