ONE Championship: Indonesia’s Adrian Mattheis wants trilogy with Alex Silva after 57-second KO
- The ‘Papua Badboy’ gets back to winning ways in Bangkok with first-round finish at ONE Fight Night 7
- Mattheis admits he ‘wasn’t really ready’ for second fight with Silva after shock win in their first bout, ‘but for the trilogy I will be ready’
Most fans arriving early for Saturday morning’s ONE Fight Night 7 card in Bangkok had barely had enough time to find their seats before Adrian Mattheis got them jumping out of them again.
The “Papua Badboy” opened the show at 7am in Lumpinee Stadium with a 57-second TKO of China’s Zelang Zhaxi (16-8-1).
“That was extraordinary,” the 29-year-old Indonesian told the Post backstage soon after, putting it lightly.
“That was actually my strategy – my game plan was to be in the slugfest with Zelang Zhaxi. He got caught. I hit him with a straight right and a hook and that’s it, he goes to sleep.”
Mattheis (11-6), who has fought his whole professional career in ONE Championship, somehow did not get a US$50,000 performance bonus for his latest effort.
“I have won by knockout in my last three wins, where is my bonus?” he said, smiling.
His previous victory before last weekend’s was undoubtedly his most impressive, if not controversial – a five-second TKO against former strawweight MMA champion Alex Silva in March 2022.