"The Natural" Earns Win, Bonus, and Title Shot After Submitting "Ruthless" in Hard Fought Battle

Last July 11, ONE Fighting Championship hosted its first ever in Taipei, Taiwan. In what turned out to be the most exciting fight of the night, Eric "The Natural" Kelly defeated "Ruthless" Rob Lisita in the ONE FC: War of Dragons main event.

ONE FC: War of Dragons

As the fight began, Lisita came out guns blazing, getting the better of the stand-up exchange with the Baguio-born Pinoy fighter. Eventually, he took "The Natural" to the ground in an attempt to outgrapple Kelly and win by submission. After an intense scramble, Kelly managed to take Lisita's back, but "Ruthless" managed to avoid significant danger as the round ended.

The second round opened with the two warriors trading blows once again. True to his nickname, Lisita dished out some ruthless strikes which eventually caught Kelly on the nose, making it bleed profusely. In an attempt to turn the tide and to save himself from danger, Kelly attempted a takedown, which Lisita successfully defended. He eventually found his way to Kelly's back, and proceeded to rain down blows to the head.

Displaying grit and skill, Kelly sneakilly slipped out of danger and proceeded to take the Aussie fighter's back and attempt a rear naked choke. As he continued to attempt the hold, blood continuously poured out of his nose, forcing the referee to stop the action and have the cageside doctor check on it.

After determining that Kelly could continue, the two fighters were placed back in their original position from before the pause in the fight, but Lisita eventually managed to escape the hold and got back to his feet. As he pushed forward, he proceeded to take Kelly back to the ground. While the Australian tried for submissions, it was the Pinoy fighter who eventually got to Lisita's back, sinking in a rear-naked choke that left Ruthless with no choice but to submit.

"The Natural" synching in the winning submission. Photo courtesy of ONE FC.

A decorated and very dangerous fighter, Lisita had Kelly in trouble a handful of times during the fight. Yet, by relying on his training, skill, and a whole lot of heart, Eric Kelly put together the perfect comeback to earn the victory.

With his gritty performance, "The Natural" earned the night's "One Warrior Bonus", which is awarded to the one fighter who puts on the most exceptional performance at a given event. As the bonus was just created recently, Kelly is the first ever competitor to earn the One Warrior distinction in the organization's history.

"The Natural" officially declared the victor. Photo property of ONE FC

Along with the W, Kelly also earned another shot at the ONE FC Featherweight title. His last fight in the organization before the battle in Taipei was also for the belt, where he received his only professional defeat from countryman Honorio Banario.

It has yet to be announced where and when Kelly takes on current featherweight title holder Koji Oishi, but for the time being, it can be assumed that it may be soon. ONE FC recently announced that they are set to host a huge event in Dubai at the end of August, with four title bouts on the card.

If Kelly is set to compete by then, and Pinoy bantamweight Geje "Gravity" Eustaquio also gets his fight to be the first ever ONE FC Banatmweight Champion on the same night, August may prove to be historic for Filipino MMA.

Only time will tell if the two Pinoy contenders will fight, and hopefully win, on the same card. For the moment however, congratulations Eric "The Natural" Kelly, for putting on a performance for the ages in Taiwan and earning the win, the first ever One Warrior Bonus, and another crack at the title.

Pinoy Fighter Eric Kelly Headlines ONE FC Event Against Rob Lisita With a Title Shot on the Line

On July 11th, Eric "The Natural" Kelly battles Rob "Ruthless" Lisita in the main event of ONE FC: Rise of Dragons at the NTU Sports Center in Taipei, Taiwan.
 

ONE FC: War of Dragons

Already expected by ONE FC fans to be hard hitting affair, more than a win is up for grabs as the bout is also a title eliminator, with the victor likely to be named the number one contender to Koji Oishi's ONE FC Featherweight Title.

Eric Kelly vs. Jens Pulver. Photo property of ONE FC.

Kelly (10-1) last fought under the OneFC banner in November of 2013, losing a bout to fellow Pinoy fighter Honorio Banario for the inaugural ONE FC Featherweight Title. As the title is now on the waist of Oishi, a win over Lisita (14-5) will no doubt place Kelly back on the path towards his ultimate goal of being an MMA world title holder.

The journey will not be easy however, as he is pitted against a fighter who is on a four fight winning streak, with Ruthless's latest coming by way of TKO over Yusuke Kawanago at ONE FC: Rise of Heroes last May in Manila. With an eighty percent finish rate, Lisita has been calling for a title shot since his victorious ONE FC debut, and will likely get his shot should he defeat The Natural.

Rob "Ruthless" Lisita. Photo property of ONE FC.

While it's close to two years since Kelly's last ONE FC bout, the only loss of his pro MMA career, he is entering the Taipei bout coming off a win, as he last fought for local promotion Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC), earning a victory over Jianbo Lu last November. While some viewers worry about the possibility of ring rust due to extended periods in between bouts, Kelly's desire to be back in competition and all the hard work he's put in during the layoffs may be what can get him past the ruthless one.

A win away from a coveted title shot, count on both Kelly and Lisita to leave it all in the cage this Friday in Taipei.