WATCH: Martin Nguyen exacts vengeance over Marat Gafurov in heated rematch

ONE Championship posted throwback highlights of Martin Nguyen’s second fight against Marat Gafurov.

Nguyen has lost three of his last four fights since 2020, but that doesn’t negate the legacy he built with ONE. ‘The Situ-Asian’ was once on top of the world, winning world championships in the featherweight and lightweight divisions. In 2017, the 33-year-old added to his legacy by avenging his worst loss against Gafurov.

In 2015, Nguyen was coming off a win in his promotional debut when he was matched up against Gafurov. The Russian made a statement in the interim featherweight world championship fight by defeating ‘The Situ-Asian’ with a 41-second submission.

Two years later, the former two-division world champion avenged his loss. ONE has now re-posted the highlights on YouTube with the caption:

“Before former two-division king Martin Nguyen collides with undefeated Russian star Shamil Gasanov at ONE Fight Night 7 on February 24, relive his ONE Featherweight World Title rematch with Dagestani submission machine Marat Gafurov in 2017!”

Nguyen defeated Gafurov with a second-round KO to earn his first world championship. He would go on to defeat Eduard Folayang for the lightweight world title in his next fight, later vacating the belt.

After failing to become a three-division world champion against bantamweight king Bibiano Fernandes, ‘The Situ-Asian’ returned to featherweight to defend his throne against Christian Lee, ultimately losing the title to Thanh Lee in 2020.

Watch Martin Nguyen vs. Marat Gafurov highlights below:

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Martin Nguyen returns to the circle at ONE Fight Night 7

Martin Nguyen is looking to make his way back to a world championship fight on February 24. The 33-year-old is taking on undefeated Russian Shamil Gasanov, who put the division on notice by defeating Kim Jae Woong with a first-round submission in his promotional debut.

Nguyen is currently the No.4-ranked featherweight, with Gasanov right behind at five. With a win against the former two-division world champion, ‘The Cobra’ would have a solid argument for being one win away from a world title shot.

Meanwhile, ‘The Situ-Asian’ isn’t giving up on adding another accomplishment to his career. After suffering three losses in his last four fights, he is looking to get back on track with a win over Gasanov. ONE Fight Night 7 can be seen for free by all North American Amazon Prime subscribers via Prime Video.





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