ROBIN “The Ilonggo” Catalan found himself on the wrong side of a highlight this time around as Ryuto “Dragon Boy” Sawada scored a first-round submission in One:Unbreakable III.
Sawada gave the Filipino little chance to impose his superior striking as the match unfolded in the clinch, where the Japanese athlete worked his grappling prowess in a strawweight bout last week at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
After taking Catalan down for the second time, he mounted the 32-year-old and then took the CFS standout’s back as the latter tried to wiggle free.
Securing Catalan’s back, “Dragon Boy” softened up his opponent as the pride of Iloilo City desperately tried to fend off the rear-naked choke.
But with a grappler of Sawada’s caliber, the submission was inevitable. He managed to free his left arm and secure the rear-naked choke, forcing the tap from Catalan with seconds remaining in the first round.
Sawada is now being touted as a likely future challenger to Joshua Pacio’s title belt.
In the main event, Alyona Rassohyna pulled off a late submission over No. 5-ranked atomweight Stamp Fairtex.
With 16 seconds remaining on the clock, Rassohyna slapped on a guillotine choke and forced the tap in the waning moments.
In the co-main event, Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade also pulled the rug from under No. 2 bantamweight Shoko Sato's feet, winning via unanimous decision.
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