Adrian Mattheis celebrates after defeating Alex Silva via a second-round technical knock-out (TKO) at ONE: LIGHTS OUT at Singapore Indoor Stadium in March.
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ndonesian mixed martial arts (MMA) standout Adrian Mattheis is scheduled to face Alex Silva at ONE 158 on June 3. The pair met up back in March at ONE: LIGHTS OUT in a barn burner of a match, but the finish of the fight had the audience split.
Now, “Papua Badboy” can prove once and for all that he is a legit threat in the division and is ready to crack into the top ranks of the stacked ONE Championship strawweight division. On the other side of the coin, the Brazilian jiujitsu (BJJ) ace can show that his defeat was a lucky break for the Indonesian.
Mattheis, who owns nine finishes out of 10 wins in his professional career, has long considered the Brazilian as his idol, conceding that “Little Rock” was a major inspiration for his career. However, he understands that a convincing win over a highly touted veteran is what it takes to propel him towards world title conversations.
Read also: When idol becomes rival – ‘Papua Badboy’ aims to finish ONE Championship former king
When the two strawweights met inside the cage, it was Silva who started strong by quickly closing the distance and directing the fight on the ground, where they spent most of the first round. Despite being put into a compromising position, the grit and determination of Mattheis had him survive the opening stanza.
The first round served as a wake-up call for the 28-year-old Indonesian as he blitzed into action by hurdling a combination of hard punches that dropped “Little Rock” to the canvas. Adrian followed up with a hammer fist to the downed Silva until referee Mohamad Sulaiman dove in and waved off the bout, preventing further damage to the former ONE world champion.
The stoppage was immediately protested by Silva and had some of the fans at odds with how the match ended. The contest was believed to have ended prematurely as the Brazilian still had some fight in him, while other fans praised the referee for making a quick decision to ensure the fighters’ safety.
The stoppage pushed Adrian’s record to 10-5 and erased Silva’s name from the top five rankings. It also marks the first time in Silva’s career to lose via a knockout.
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This article is published in collaboration with ONE Championship