ONE Championship lit up Tokyo’s Ariake Arena with a night full of statement-making performances across five high-stakes MMA contests at ONE SAMURAI 1 inside Tokyo’s Ariake Arena on Wednesday, April 29.
From rising contenders seizing their moment to established names reinforcing their status, the event showcased the depth of talent across the roster in the all-encompassing sport.
Before attention shifts to the four blockbuster World Title fights, here’s what went down from the MMA battles, which streamed live via pay-per-view at live.onefc.com.
Sawada Stops Miura, Earns World Title Shot
In a high-stakes atomweight MMA contest, Chihiro Sawada‘s world-class grappling powered her to a sensational opening round submission win against Ayaka “Zombie” Miura.
It was far from straightforward for the Team Akatsuki and IDEA Asakusa affiliate, though. Miura attempted to take charge early with a fierce takedown, but Sawada stood her ground and stuffed the attempt.
The 28-year-old chipped away with grounded knees when they were locked in the clinch, but Miura was having none of that and attempted to break free to get control again. The Tokyo-based fighter defended intelligently and gradually worked her way into a dominant position through sharp positional awareness.
Sensing her moment, Sawada rolled into an armbar attempt against the flow of traffic, isolating Miura’s arm and making crucial adjustments before fully extending for the finish.
The tap came at the 4:33 mark of the fight and improved Sawada’s record to 12-1. At the same time, she earned a shot at ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Champion Denice “The Menace” Zamboanga.
Hirata Downs Phogat With A Late Rear-Naked Choke
In atomweight MMA, Itsuki “Android 18” Hirata overcame early adversity to submit Ritu “The Indian Tigress” Phogat with a rear-naked choke in the third round.
Phogat imposed her wrestling from the opening bell, looking to control the tempo on the canvas. But the judoka stayed patient through the exchanges, eventually flipping the script during a scramble to wrap the first frame with ground-and-pound.
Hirata continued that momentum in the second frame. After absorbing a clean left hand, the 26-year-old brought Phogat to the mat and took her back, where she instantly hunted for a rear-naked choke. The latter, to her credit, did well under pressure to survive the round.
Sensing she needed something big, Phogat started the final frame aggressively. The 31-year-old scored a takedown and looked to establish dominance. “Android 18,” however, got the upper hand against Phogat once more – and this time, there was no escape.
Hirata transitioned to full mount and capitalized on a scramble to take Phogat’s back. She tightened her grip on another rear-naked choke, which eventually drew a tap from her opposite number at 2:42 of the stanza for an eighth career victory.
Wada Outpoints Ito In Tactical Flyweight MMA War
ONE veteran Tatsumitsu “The Sweeper” Wada used his experience to earn a split decision victory over Seiichiro Ito in another all-Japan showdown.
Wada stood out early in this flyweight MMA tilt, utilizing his reach advantage to land jabs and crosses while mixing in low kicks to disrupt Ito’s rhythm. In range, though, the promotional newcomer offered some glimpses of what he can do in the striking department.
Still, the 37-year-old controlled the tempo in the second round, landing clean straight punches and using his movement to stay elusive whenever Ito closed the distance with some punches.
Wada brought the same style into the final canto, opening with a sharp right hand and defending his opponent’s takedown attempt. As time ran out, Ito desperately threw combinations to close the gap, but the Swag Gym Kyoto athlete matched him in the exchanges.
Two of the three judges awarded Wada the win after 15 minutes of non-stop action, earning him his 27th career victory.
Yamakita Taps Kurosawa With A Slick Armbar
Keito “Pocket Monk” Yamakita earned his fourth successive win with a brilliant submission finish against Ryohei Kurosawa in this all-Japanese strawweight MMA battle.
The 29-year-old quickly shot for a takedown and controlled most of the action throughout the first frame on the canvas. The Blackbelt Japan athlete did find a loophole around his foe’s grappling prowess, but “Pocket Monk” took him back to the mats to trouble him.
Yamakita was up against Kurosawa’s solid striking when round two resumed, but he responded with feints and dodged to score another takedown. He maintained control on the canvas and slowly plotted his way to a highlight-reel moment.
After a brief scramble with Kurosawa searching for an exit, Yamakita used his frame to pin his man down, isolated his left arm, and cranked in an armbar that drew a tap at 1:31 of the second canto.
Yamakita’s fourth consecutive triumph improves his record to 12-1 and keeps him firmly in the run for a shot at the ONE Strawweight MMA World Title.
Nagai Edges Out Kambe To Stay Perfect
In a back-and-forth curtain-raiser, unbeaten Kanata Nagai applied steady pressure to overcome fellow Japanese debutant Atsubo Kambe in bantamweight MMA action.
Both men opened aggressively, exchanging jabs and punches before the Shooto Bantamweight Champion shot for a takedown. Kambe defended well, though, before the two exchanged heavy knees in the clinch to end the frame.
The second round saw more exchanges on the feet. Nagai then switched levels, took his opponent down, and secured his back. The Tribe Tokyo MMA athlete locked in a deep rear-naked choke from there, but his dance partner stayed composed and escaped.
In the final stanza, Kambe again defended Nagai’s takedown and briefly threatened with a guillotine choke. In response, the 21-year-old pressed forward in the closing moments, throwing combinations from every angle to finish strong.
After three entertaining rounds, all three judges awarded the match to Nagai, who moved to 10-0 in his career.