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Natalia Diachkova's four knockouts make her a threat unlike any Stella Hemetsberger has faced

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Natalia Diachkova's four knockouts make her a threat unlike any Stella Hemetsberger has faced

A 31-year-old challenger with a habit of ending fights early gets a second crack at the title that got away from her once before.

Natalia Diachkova challenges two-sport World Champion Stella Hemetsberger for the ONE Women's Strawweight Muay Thai World Title in the main event of ONE Fight Night 46, streaming live in US primetime this Friday, August 14, from Bangkok's Lumpinee Stadium. The Russian opened her ONE Championship run with four consecutive wins on the weekly series to earn a six-figure contract in 2024, three of them by knockout.

Her first World Title opportunity did not go her way, but two statement victories since have put her back in line for another shot. Four of her six wins under the ONE banner have come by first-round knockout, a finishing rate that marks her as one of the division's most explosive strikers, most recently a stoppage of Fahsai Aor Yutthachai at ONE Friday Fights 152 this past May.

“For a long time, I've been tortured by injustice. Maybe I imagined it myself, though, but I just couldn't explain some things to myself. Like, why do I train for so many years, and I failed psychologically in the title fight? Why is it always this way,†she said.

Natalia Diachkova brings early finishes to Lumpinee

Hemetsberger has built her championship run on five-round composure rather than single knockout moments, closing out both of her title-winning fights against Jackie Buntan over the full distance. Diachkova's game plan operates on the opposite clock entirely.

Whichever quality wins out on August 14, early knockout power against proven championship-rounds composure, will decide who leaves Lumpinee Stadium still holding two-sport gold.

“I realized that everything that happened to me was for a reason, and I guess I'm thankful for it. All the changes that ought to have happened to me happened, and now I'm exactly where I should be,†she said.

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM


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MMA

Paulo Costa gives UFC 3 options in contract standoff

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Paulo Costa gives UFC 3 options in contract standoff
Paulo
Costa recently listed his terms and conditions to fight out his

Ultimate Fighting Championship contract.

Costa has one fight left on his current deal and has been accusing
the UFC of stalling his last matchup. “Borrachinha†claims the last
bout on his contract should be a three-rounder, but reiterated that
he's willing to accept a five-rounder if he's compensated
accordingly.

Paulo Costa says UFC can book his final fight, raise his pay or
release him

Costa took to social media to lay out his and the UFC's options for
his last fight. He called out promotional exec Hunter Campbell,
claiming that he's willing to fight any light heavyweight on the
roster in a three-rounder and that he'll gladly accept a five-round
bout if given at least six weeks' notice and additional pay.

“OK, I'm making this public and clear: I have 1 fight left,†Costa
wrote on X. “On my contract, the purse is set for 3 rounds, not 5.
I'm asking for the 3-round fight that was already agreed on
contract. It can be anyone on the UFC LHW roster. I think Hunter
has 3 options now: A) Give me that last 3-round fight (I'll take
any opponent). B) Give me a 5-round fight at LHW against anyone in
6 weeks. I'll take it, BUT raise my purse accordingly. That's the
minimum that's fair, right? C) Release me from my contract now.
Simple and clean. I hope everyone understands. 9-18-26 Las Vegas,
Nevada Sincerely, Paulo Costa.â€

Costa (16-4) is coming off back-to-back finishes against Roman
Kopylov and Azamat
Murzakanov. He previously campaigned for an interim title fight
for UFC
332, but later revealed the promotion wasn't interested.

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MMA

Justin Gaethje has brutal warning for whoever fights Ilia Topuria next

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Justin Gaethje has brutal warning for whoever fights Ilia Topuria next
Justin
Gaethje gives credit where it's due.

Gaethje (28-5) recently heaped praise on former foe Ilia
Topuria (17-1). The
Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder gave the
former two-division champ a lesson in humility with a brutal
beating at
UFC Freedom 250 at the White House this past June. He believes
“El Matador†will be extremely dangerous on his Octagon return.

Gaethje still considers Topuria one of the UFC's best after
handing him his first loss

Gaethje won the undisputed UFC lightweight title in a huge upset as
Topuria's corner called for a stoppage at the end of the fourth
round. “The Highlight†believes Topuria will dominate his next
opponent as he looks to rebound from his first professional
loss.

While Gaethje and Topuria have exchanged trash talk, the former has
never doubted the latter's skill set. Gaethje still considers
Topuria one of the best fighters in the world and wants to see him
thrive.

“Whoever fights [Topuria] next is gonna be f*cked,†Gaethje said on
the “Double Coverage†podcast. “If he forgets how dangerous this
sport is, how there is a little bit of luck and chance and makes
mistakes, he is not going to be at his best or locked in as he
should be. But outside of that, without those mental mistakes, he
is one of the best in the world. There's no doubt about it.
Everything I say, I'm never talking sh*t about the guy because he
is so good. I want to see him come back. I want to see him thrive;
I want to see him prosper.â€

There are rumblings of a rematch between Topuria and Gaethje being
in the works. However, Arman
Tsarukyan further solidified his status as the No.1 contender
and bolstered his case for a long-overdue title shot with a
first-round knockout win over Mauricio
Ruffy at UFC
331 on Sept. 19.

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MMA

BKB 59 results: Julian Fernandez rallies for KO in Mexico debut

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BKB 59 results: Julian Fernandez rallies for KO in Mexico debut

Bare Knuckle Boxing made its debut in Mexico on Sept. 19.

BKB 59 went down at Auditorio Municipal in Tijuana, Mexico.
Tijuana's own Julian Fernandez put his super cruiserweight title on
the line against Dan Podmore in the main event.

Julian Fernandez stops Dan Podmore after an early knockdown at
BKB 59

Fernandez survived an early first-round knockdown and returned the
favor later in the round. He took a little over a minute in the
second round to finish Podmore.

Cecy Ulloa took on Andy Nguyen for the super flyweight title in the
co-main event at BKB 59. Ulloa put on a beating on Nguyen for three
rounds, leaving her unable to answer the bell for the fourth.

Here are the complete BKB 59 results:

Julian Fernandez def. Dan Podmore via KO (1:12 of Round 2)
Cecy Ulloa def. Andy Nguyen via TKO (2:00 of Round 3)
Romario Ovalle vs. Marco Chino Villa ruled a No Contest due to an
accidental headbutt (0:45 of Round 3)
Pablo Felipe Anguiano def. Ricardo Ramses Rueda via KO (0:41 of
Round 1)
Adrian Gonzalez def. Javier Santiago Valverde via TKO (2:16 of
Round 1)
Felipe Abraham Huerta def. Erick Eduardo Soria via TKO (2:32 of
Round 3)
Jonathan Duran def. Kevin Millan Sanchez via KO (1:59 of Round
2)
Jesus Navarrete via KO (0:17 of Round 1)
Ramon Olivas def. Jovani Misael Sanchez via KO (2:29 of Round
1)
Sergio Zarate def. Rolando Paredes via Unanimous Decision (49-46,
49-46, 49-46)
Jesus Rodriguez def. Ricardo Ibarra via KO (2:18 of Round 1)
Norberto Pozos Flores def. Mauricio Anaya by TKO (1:42 of Round 1)

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