Adrian Mattheis earned the biggest win of his career – and arguably in Indonesian mixed martial arts history – by finishing Alex Silva with his first salvo of the second round at ONE: LIGHTS OUT.
The 28-year-old took out the former ONE Strawweight World Champion and current #5-ranked contender with a blistering jab-cross combo in their showdown at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday, 11 March.
By defeating the decorated Brazilian grappler, “Papua Badboy” extended his own record for finishes in the strawweight MMA division (9) and set a new divisional record for knockouts (5).
However, it was Silva who raced out of the blocks to start round one, as he closed the distance and landed a looping right hand on his rival.
The 39-year-old slipped to the mat as the fighters exchanged, but he found a way to put Mattheis on his back in the ensuing scramble – and that’s where the Indonesian spent the majority of the frame.
The younger athlete’s grit and determination kept him in the fight as the BJJ wizard searched for an opening from the top.
And even though “Little Rock” almost locked in a north-south choke, his opponent never gave up on his hunt for an exit.
After surviving a tough first five minutes, the Indonesian slugger came out aggressively to begin round two – and he immediately made his firepower count.
“Papua Badboy” lunged in with a devastating punching combination that dropped Silva to the mat.
Sensing a golden opportunity, he followed up with a hammerfist to his grounded foe, and the referee immediately dove in to wave off the bout.
Though Silva protested, Mattheis earned the stoppage win with only five seconds gone in the second round, pushing his MMA record to 10-5 and making a strong case to enter the strawweight division’s top-five rankings.
(Photo credits to: One Championship)