Five finishes produced massive paydays when ONE 173 delivered its biggest spectacle of 2025. A handful of fighters walked away with $50,000 performance bonuses after delivering highlight-reel finishes that left Tokyo’s Ariake Arena in pandemonium.
Yuya Wakamatsu and Christian Lee successfully defended their ONE MMA World Titles with brutal second-round TKO victories at ONE 173: Superbon vs. Noiri on Sunday, November 16. Both champions overcame adversity before unleashing devastating finishing sequences that earned bonuses from ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong.
Wakamatsu made his first title defense against reigning strawweight king Joshua Pacio. The Japanese fighter weathered early trouble when Pacio stunned him with short hooks, then survived a guillotine choke attempt from the Filipino legend.
The flyweight titleholder trapped Pacio’s back and unloaded punches and grounded knees throughout the first round. Despite the relentless barrage, Pacio showed resilience and made it to the second frame.
His survival proved short-lived. Wakamatsu connected with a clean one-two combination that dropped the challenger at 54 seconds of round two, then hammered him with knees to the head until the referee stopped the contest.
Lee handed undefeated Turkish challenger Alibeg Rasulov his first career defeat in their lightweight title rematch. The two-division ONE World Champion denied every takedown attempt before connecting with a knee to the body and high kick in the second round.
When Rasulov shot for another takedown, Lee sprawled and trapped him in a D’Arce choke. He unleashed grounded knees until the referee intervened at 2:32 of round two, improving his record to 18-4 with 17 finishes.
Takeru, Ruotolo, Suakim earn spectacular bonus victories at ONE 173
Takeru Segawa earned his first ONE Championship victory on home soil. He stopped Denis Puric via TKO at 2:49 of round two after scoring four knockdowns. The former three-division K-1 Champion flustered the Canadian-Bosnian veteran with diverse attacks in the opening frame, dropping him twice.
Puric stormed back with heavy punches in round two. But the Japanese star proved too much and scored two more knockdowns to force the stoppage. He improved to 45-5 while positioning himself for another crack at Rodtang Jitmuangnon.
Tye Ruotolo continued his flawless MMA transition. He submitted undefeated Japanese star Shozo Isojima with a rear-naked choke at 2:26 of round one. The three-time ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion showcased evolving striking before taking the fight to the canvas.
He worked with ground-and-pound before taking the back and securing the finish. With that, he remained undefeated in mixed martial arts while earning another bonus.
Suakim Sor Jor Tongprajin overcame early adversity to score a stunning TKO of Jake Peacock at 26 seconds of round three. He weathered trouble in the opening round. Then the three-division Lumpinee Stadium Muay Thai World Champion dropped the British-Canadian with a devastating left hook in the final stanza. By doing so, he improved to 155-59.