Lion Championship MMA: Le Van Tuan retains title with submission victory
VOV.VN - Le Van Tuan dominated the headline bout at Lion Championship Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), securing a convincing victory over veteran Tran Trong Kim to retain his 56kg title in front of a home crowd in Hanoi on April 18.
The defending champion, who won the belt a year ago, entered the fight as the clear favourite against his 38-year-old opponent. He quickly imposed his pace, taking Kim down early and maintaining control on the ground.
Despite being under heavy pressure, Kim, nicknamed Kim Mao Su Vuong, showed remarkable resilience, escaping submission attempts and even threatening with a near leg lock late in the opening round, drawing loud reactions from the crowd.
However, the momentum remained firmly with Tuan. Continuing his aggressive approach in the second round, he capitalised on another opening to lock in an arm submission, forcing Kim to tap out and sealing a successful title defence.
Following the bout, Kim announced he would take a break from competition to recover from injury.
“Martial arts is my greatest passion. I started quite late, and now my ligament is partially torn. I will take some time off to recover and come back stronger,” he said.
The 56kg title fight was later named “Fight of the Night,” with both fighters sharing a bonus prize of VND100 million.
Elsewhere on the card, Du Van Thuan extended his unbeaten streak to four fights with a technical knockout victory over Nguyen Hop Hai in the 60kg division. His effective grappling and calf kicks proved decisive, eventually leaving his opponent unable to continue.
In another bout, Tran Ngoc Lam was awarded victory after Nguyen Quoc Bao suffered a severe cut to the forehead, prompting the referee and medical team to stop the fight.
Launched in 2022, Lion Championship is Vietnam’s first professional MMA promotion, quickly establishing itself as the country’s premier platform for mixed martial arts, combining striking, grappling and submission techniques in a format comparable to global organisations such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Ho Chi Minh City international martial arts festival spreads message of peace
VOV.VN - Le Loi Street in Ho Chi Minh City will become a “martial arts boulevard” for three days, with thousands of masters, coaches and practitioners from more than 20 domestic and international delegations gathering to take part in the Ho Chi Minh City International Martial Arts Festival, to be held from November 21 to 23.
